Vacation from the Norm Bk 2: Journey of Discovery
by kgs-wy
Summary: For Shego, former heroine and villainess, now 'just' a security consultant, the latest job in Munich should have been simple! Yet her life became more complicated than she had ever expected; then again, falling in love so often is...
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Forward**

And now... Review replies for Book I's epilogue!

CaptProd: thanks for the review, glad that you liked the fic! And now, here's the continuation. Hope you continue to enjoy, and if I do indeed need help, I'll keep the offer in mind.

Jimmy1201: yeah, I know the epilogue pushed it a bit, but, well, there_ was _some important stuff in there... ^_^'' As to Shego's fears, well, we shall see, non? And thank _you_ - as well as _everyone_ that's joined you in reading - for enjoying and continuing to read my work!

And now... On with "Vacation from the Norm, Book II"!

Disclaimer located at the bottom, below Author's Notes.

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

The small sports compact with dozens of obvious aftermarket additions screamed around a corner and onto Go City's main thoroughfare. Tires squealed and the blow off valves of its aftermarket turbocharging system whistled even louder than the whine of its turbo or the burping of its exhaust system. Several vehicles were forced to slam on their brakes or dodge out of the way, resulting in three minor fender benders and one work truck narrowly avoiding a pair of pedestrians and the southeast corner's stoplight.

"Man, I can't, y'know, I just _can't_ friggin' _believe_ you, man!" the teen screamed at the driver of the car, one of his partners in crime. His livid face made more so by the rapid fire, nearly incomprehensible nature ranting, wild eyed stare, missing teeth and barely scabbed over sores on his thin, drawn face, "'Oh, it's just, just, it's just a simple li'l smash an' grab at this pharmacy, dude!' That's what you friggin' _said_ man! An' now we're, y'know, gettin' our asses kicked, y'know? I mean, kicked _hard_, y'know? Y'know? _Y'know_? By some, y'know, some teenaged_ bitch _an' a goddamn friggin', friggin' _cripple_ in a friggin' _wheelchair_!"

"Yo, shut up you friggin' tweaker!" the huge teen in the back seat roared, slamming a meaty fist into the back of his partner's head. The methamphetamine addled brain of his partner didn't register pain as it should have, but being knocked literally into the footwell of the compact stopped his screaming for a minute. "It's not JC's fault, man! It should've been easy, so shut your mouth 'fore I shut it for ya!"

"We just gotta get to 43rd street an' head east, so both of you shut up!" JC, the latino driver of the car, growled with a half insane smile as he looked in the rearview mirror. His voice, despite being the smallest man in the car, was the deepest, and he seemed to be the one in command, "We get back home, ain't no way those two'll follow!"

"Unless they're helpin' the pigs to, y'know, y'know, to stop us 'n' shit, man!" the meth head screamed from his position, digging through his coat for something, "An' we gotta, y'know, we _gotta_ keep 'em from our turf!"

"What the hell you doin', Maddog?" Smalls ground out as the man crowed in delight.

"Hey, man, check it!" he pulled out an odd looking device that looked to be part firearm, part power drill, "I got dis, y'know, the other day! Y'know, y'know, those dudes we found dead? Y'know? The dead ones, with the red outfits?"

"What the_ fuck_, man, you stupid?" JC screamed, his normally deep voice breaking as sweat beaded on his brow, "Don' you dare turn that thing on, Ese, yo' gon' get us killed!"

"Wha'dya mean?" Maddog smiled insanely as he hit the power window switch, staring at the flying wheelchair behind them, "Worried that I got the firepower, JC?"

"No, you moron, that's a supervillain's shit!" JC growled, slamming on his brakes as Maddog turned on the power switch. The expensive brakes on the car dropped them from over one hundred and twenty miles per hour to nothing within seven seconds, and he slammed the emergency brake into place and opened his door, "Smalls, bail 'fore this _pendejo_ gets us killed!"

"What the hell, man?" Smalls begged as he shoved himself over the coupe's seat and out of its door, right on JC's heels.

"There's a reason I didn' want anyone grabbin' shit from that warehouse we checked out!" JC said as he continued to run at top speed, even as he heard a whine from the weapon Maddog was wielding, "You heard about that supervillain, Gemini, doin' somethin' down southside?"

"No shit?" Smalls gasped as he glanced back in time to hear several bursts of highly concentrated plasma launched out of the passenger window at the two heroes that were descending upon them, "So..."

There was an odd sound in the air an instant later: several loud, hissing almost-whistles in the air. The two heroes seemed to notice them too as they swung wide of the car, just as three streaks of red and black shot from the sky on off white trails of smoke. The explosion that was JC's car was impressive, easily felt in the two gang-bangers chests despite being over one hundred yards away and half hidden in an alleyway.

"_¡Hostia puta!_" was all JC could think to say as he stared back at the burning wreckage of his prized tuner car. He wanted to cry, curse and scream all at once, but he just felt... Numb. Maddog may have been a crazy, methed up bastard, but he'd been one of the boys, dammit!

"Man..." Smalls finally gasped, apparently having held his breath as if expecting more missiles to home in on them, "I've never been so glad you kept me from signing up with HenchCo!"

"Yeah..." JC muttered, reaching into his light jacket and sighing in relief as he felt the odd, knurled stainless steel 'jar' the costume freak had asked him to get. He looked down and saw the jar, and shook his head as he realized it looked like a big, pop bottle sized version of the nitroglycerine bottle his granddad had. "He'd paid us good, too, but all this for a bottle of pills?"

"Yeah..." Smalls growled in agreement, slapping a meaty fist into an open palm, the strike echoing like a gunshot in the alley, "So, we gone?"

"Yeah, man," JC hissed, "Let's call Anna an' get a lift to the park, man... We gonna at least get some compensation from that asshole!"

With that, the two turned and headed deeper into the alleyway, Smalls already on his smartphone and calling his current girlfriend for a lift. Neither saw the shadow lurking on the roof above them that dwarfed even the six foot three, three hundred and fifty pounds of Smalls, nor the sickly smile as that same shadow leapt down upon them.

All Anna heard when she picked up her phone was odd sounding footsteps and a strange, plinking slap as the huge shadow left the cooling bodies of the gangbangers behind, tossing the stainless steel pill jar back and forth between his huge hands with enough force to kill a person...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Kim Possible sighed contentedly as she felt the early morning Munich sun warming her legs. She was completely nude, but the slight chill in the air didn't bother her in the least, thanks to the warmth radiating off of the body she was cuddled up against, and the body spooned behind her. Ron's right arm was, as usual, around her waist where her left hand clasped to his right, and his left was under her left shoulder, with her lower left leg half trapped between both of his. His face was nuzzled into her flowing mane of red, and she felt the soothing flow of his breath against her neck every time he exhaled. Smiling slightly, she allowed herself a bit of an in situ, almost isometric stretch and opened her eyes, smiling at the sight before her.

Shay Gottlieb, known to most of the world as Shego, lay on her side, her right arm under Kim's head and curled up to rest her hand on the red-head's shoulder. Her left arm was resting easily on Kim's waist, just above and indeed touching Ron's arm, resting easily between Kim's back and Ron's belly. Kim had her right leg between Shay's, the middle of her thigh just a few centimeters below the apex of the older woman's legs.

The pale woman's hair was in disarray, much as Kim knew hers was. She didn't care, though, as she found Shay's sleeping face to be haunting in its seemingly innocent beauty. The tension she normally saw in the pale beauty's whole being was gone as she lie there, mouth slightly parted and eyes closed.

She carefully eased her right arm out from between her and Shay's bodies and raised her hand to move the few locks of hair long enough out of the older woman's face. She traced her fingers along the graceful angle of her jaw, her touch feather light, feeling a slight flash of awe as Shay turned her face into the touch, even in her sleep. _Such a kitten..._ Kim giggled to herself, moving the fingers up past the older woman's cheek to her temple, then along her forehead.

_Her skin's so soft..._ Kim marveled, drawing the finger back along the graceful arc of an eyebrow, around the outer edge of her eye, and down to her full, luscious lips. _She's so... Amazing..._ Kim's mental tone was almost despondent as she observed her beautiful lover's reactions, _Why did it take me so long to realize it?_

She knew the answer was as complex as the question was simple. Even now, after admitting to loving the woman as much as she loved her fiancé, she wasn't sure how it had happened, but knew that she just... Did. Like she did with Ron, despite all the things that said she and her blond shouldn't be more than close friends at most. _I guess it's just like Mom said..._ she sighed contentedly as Shay opened her lips a little more when Kim crossed over them, gently tugging the former thief's lower lip out ever so slightly with one fingernail before letting go, _That's the surest sign of_ true _love: that you can't explain its presence, or how it happened, just that it _is_..._

Shay let out a low, almost disappointed sounding whine as the fingers left her face, but calmed with a soothed, whispered moan when Kim's fingers began tracing down the graceful curve of her neck. Kim stared in rapt fascination as, even in her sleep, the woman arched her neck to grant her caressing fingers better access. Kim slid her fingers along the expanse of flesh, then across to the shoulder and down the arm wrapped so comfortingly around her waist.

"So beautiful..." Kim whispered as she continued from the elbow to the curve of Shay's trim, muscular waist. She barely suppressed a giggle as the older woman's skin jumped slightly at the feather light contact, and then she paused for the briefest instants. Then she smiled - a bright expression of pure delight - as she realized that, from the shoulders on down, goosebumps had raised in response to her featherlight caresses.

Kim started to move her fingers again, around to what she could reach of the older woman's back. She felt Shay again arch ever so slightly, even moving her arm in her sleep to allow a little more of the contact her sleeping mind obviously enjoyed. Kim felt the muscles bunch briefly, before relaxing even further, felt the power that the woman held contained within her supple frame, and was overcome with an emotion she could only describe of as awe. _So powerful..._ she thought with such pride at being allowed so close to her, _Yet so feminine... How could she_ ever _doubt she's beautiful?_

She drew her hand down Shay's back, then gave the firm rear she was quickly coming to view as one of her favorite parts of the older woman a soft squeeze. Shay's breath caught slightly at the gesture, and Kim stopped, worried she'd woken the older woman. Shay shifted slightly, her legs drawing Kim's thigh even closer to her slightly heated core, then relaxed. Kim sighed softly in relief, drawing her fingers inwards across lower curve of Shay's hip to trace slowly up, then around her navel. Kim's smile widened in response to the goosebumps following, and the soft, almost-giggle that slipped from the older woman.

As she came to the older woman's breasts, she slid her fingers around the outer edge of left breast, then back around to the right, at least, what wasn't pressed into Kim's own chest. _I'm so jealous,_ she barely kept from speaking the thought aloud, _These are so... Perfect..._ She traced back across the right nipple, then across to gently grasp the breast in her hand, gently squeezing. She was vaguely surprised to feel the nipple almost instantly harden, even if only a little bit. Kim was sure hers would harden in her sleep, too, but doubted it would be quite that quickly! It made her wonder after the older woman's libido.

She'd noticed, in their first few days of hesitant exploration of each other, that in the afternoon, Shay seemed to be... Indifferent wasn't quite right, but not as into touching and fondling as she was in the evenings. And, it seemed, she was like Ron in that she awoke horny. Kim wondered if that was going to be an issue in the future, at least, if the older woman could never come to grips with the idea of being with Ron. Kim was not someone that woke up aroused; not to say she couldn't_ be _aroused, just that it took more time than if it were the evening or afternoon. She guessed some people, seeing her touching the older woman, wouldn't expect that, but she couldn't help but touch the flawless beauty before her, even if it was far from sexual in her mind.

Shaking the thoughts off slightly, she moved her hand again, stopping over Shay's heart and gently pressing her palm into the slight hollow at the top of her breasts. "I love you, Shay Gottlieb..." she reaffirmed her claim from the prior night, "As much as I love Ron... I always will, and I'll always be yours, as much as I am Ron's..."

She felt her eyes sting with the force of the emotion within her, saw her vision blur as tears came... But they were not tears of sadness, but of a joy she hadn't felt since Ron had asked her to be his wife. She knew, with more certainty than anything else in her life, that she was Shay's as much as Ron was hers, that Shay was hers as much as she was Ron's...

In that instant, she knew beyond a shadow of doubt, that she had a new mission. _I want to help you Shay... To get past whatever this is, whatever hurt is inside you that scares you to be with Ron..._ she reached out to cup Shay's cheek, craning her neck slightly to impress a tender kiss on the older woman's luscious lips. Pulling back, she spoke in the barest of whispers, her words carrying the impossible weight of the love she felt for the woman in front of her and the man behind her, "No matter what, Shay, I want_ Ron _to be yours as much as_ I _am... For_ you _to be his as much as_ I _am... I promise, Shay, I'll do whatever I can to help you, so we can be yours, and you can be ours... So you understand, so you_ know_, that when I say I love you, it's unhindered... So you_ know_, when I say 'Now, always and forever!' It's not just for me, or for you... But for_ all _of us..."

She craned her neck again and brushed Shay's lips, before curling herself back under the older woman's chin, as she had been when she awoke. Lulled by her promise and the slow, even breathing of her fiancé and her lover, she quickly fell back to sleep; had she stayed awake, she'd have been shocked to feel tears softly soaking into her hair, and felt the feather soft kiss of black stained lips on her temple...

Perhaps she'd have heard the desperate, loving whisper of her lover, "I love you too, Princess..." Shay Gottlieb drew a scared, shuddering breath, but as she stared at her hand - resting as it was between Kim's back and Ron's stomach - without feeling more than the a shiver of fear, her voice gained the slightest edge of hope, "Now, always and forever... I love you too..."

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Betty..." Sheldon 'Gemini' Director murmured softly into the ear of his sister, who, against all his hopes and dreams, had become his lover just over a week earlier, "Wake up, Little Sister..." He sat up slightly from his seated position on her bed as she moved to half rise on her elbows.

"Hmmwhaa..." she groaned softly, and a stab of guilt flashed deep in Gemini's stomach. It had been a risk, slipping into the apartment she slept in at GJEHQ, but it had been worth it. He, his Agents Alpha and Beta, and Beta Five had drugged her and taken her via a hidden accessway to one of the monitoring stations close to the European Global Justice headquarters. The blood tests he had ordered had, of course, terrified him. What if it hadn't been her? What if it was an agent of hers in disguise, or worse, someone else entirely? "Shelly?" her tone was worried, and then when she saw him, hot with not just annoyance, but worry, "Sheldon, what are you doing? If someon-..."

"Shhh..." he silenced her with a gentle finger on her lips using his flesh and blood hand, "It was a risk I had to take, love... We left a female agent using a holosuit to convince them with electronic means that you were there. I... I'm sorry, Betty, but I_ had _to make sure..."

"Had to make sure of what, Shelly?" she hissed, a hurt, almost betrayed expression on her face.

"That..." he closed his eyes and drew himself up slightly, his visage firm as he continued in the cold tone of command he used so often, "That you, Little Sister, were indeed _you_. I had to run genetic testing, to make sure..."

"I see." Betty sighed, lying back on the bed and running a hand over her face, "I see... Sorry, Shelly, but all this running around and hiding..."

"I know, love..." he murmured, relaxing his posture and moving to lay next to her, cuddling up to his little sister and holding her in a comforting embrace, "It's getting to me as well..."

"Lord Gemini!" the sound of Beta Five's voice cutting into the room via intercom made Gemini flinch, "We have word of possible trouble!"

"Beta Five..." Gemini ground out, sitting on the edge of his sister's bed and saying, "It is unlocked..." Beta Five, sweating nervously but remaining otherwise composed walked in and Gemini indicated a seat across from the bed he sat on, "Have a seat."

Beta Five hesitated slightly, then felt his bowels wanting to void themselves as he noticed Betty Director's hand gently resting on Gemini's elbow. "Y-yes, sir."

"No need to worry, Beta Five..." Gemini smiled with cold amusement, "I've... Turned over a bit of a new leaf. I won't kill you just for being a messenger, or for minor to moderate mistakes... But, you have news?"

"Yes, two things, sir." Beta Five nodded, relief visible on his face, "We have word from Go City that one of the weapons that was stolen from our men's bodies was activated, and the thief was... Dealt with."

"Good, good..." Gemini nodded for him to continue.

"The other news..." Beta Five sighed, "Three of our operatives were found out by The Agency That Shall Not Be Named..." He nodded at Betty before continuing, "Agent Epsilon, Epsilon Two and Beta Two were discovered snooping around the GJ Frankfurt building, apparently not long after Shego left..."

"Damn..." Gemini growled, having hoped to get some samples of the woman's DNA, "Have they talked?"

"Only in generalities." Beta Five hedged slightly, "But they may be bringing in a Truth Ray Mk. II to use on them..."

"Try and get them out..." Gemini said, favoring his sister with a slight glance, before sighing slightly as she nodded, "But if you can not... Eliminate them."

"We have two teams in route, sir!" Beta Five nodded, "Agent Alpha had guessed you might want to attempt an extraction, so the first team is set up for removal, the second, for assassination."

"Good!" Gemini nodded, never having expected Betty's suggestion as to his new Agent Alpha, or her suggestion of improvement by learning from mistakes would have succeeded as it had. "Dismissed for now, Beta Five."

"Yes, sir!" Beta Five stood and saluted, then left smartly, closing the door behind him.

"Shelly?" Betty's voice called out, and he looked at her, seeing a now familiar glint in her eye, "Do... Do we have time?"

"A quickie, perhaps..." Gemini smiled lovingly at the beautiful woman staring so demurely up at him. Slowly, he reached out surprisingly gentle hands to fondle one of her magnificent breasts through the thin cotton sleepwear she wore, "And... Maybe some more cuddling."

"Oh, Shelly..." she sighed, sitting up and reaching for the front of his trousers, her knowledgeable hands making quick work of exposing her apparently second favorite part of him...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Professor! Mathter! Come in, come in!" Jack Hench crowed in delight as the last two invited guests of a very exclusive party were escorted in by two Knights Lieutenants, officers among HenchCo's elite bodyguard henches.

Mathter looked around the modestly sized but opulent room with a smile, and held his hand out to Jack, "A pleasure to finally sum up to such agust surroundings, Mr. Hench!"

The man's smile was sincere, and surprisingly to Hench, less unhinged than it had been the last few times he'd met the man. _I guess that a makeover_ can _help bring someone up!_ Jack had to admit, his design department had come up with a doozy, but it worked quite well. Instead of gold, green and purple, they'd gone with making his overall costume a darker green, with gold and purple piping along the outer seams of the arms and legs. They'd gone with a paler version of each along his torso to give his costume a slimming effect, while removing the rediculous "M" from the top of his head.

Instead of a cap stuck on with spirit gum and hope, he now bore a tight fitting half cowl/half helm that was sleek looking, with a few cutouts that allowed his scalp some cooling and at the same time gave some free rein to his crimson hair. The cowl/helm left his ears free - and included a HenchTooth super-strong Bluetooth headset - and came down to the hollow of his cheeks, and the noseguard just below the eyes, both straight lined to look like a slightly stylized "M". It did not seem to block his peripheral vision, and Jack could see the telltale flashes of light that indicated he was currently using the suit's 'enhanced reality' function. _Yes, it seems to have helped him immensely..._ Jack was so busy congratulating that he almost missed what the red-head said as he continued.

"I must admit to only a fractional role in the last equation," the man nodded to the taller man beside him with a nod of the head, "While I was coincident to the positive overall residual of the plan, my partner's ratio of work was less oblique than mine."

"Nonesense!" Professor Mindbender and Jack answered at the same time, Jack continuing after a nod from Mindbender, "Mathter, if we hadn't had you involved, our original plan would have had much_ lower _positive cashflow... The idea of leaking information to OWFL and thus allowing some of my henches to 'assist' in the stoppage? Brilliant!"

"Indeed, Mathter..." Mindbender chuckled as the Mathter both blushed and preened, holding his hand out to Jack, "I'm honored for the invitation, Jack, is the Senator here tonight, or is this for less savory types?"

"Oh, he's here, alright, with his wife." Jack's smile was positively jackal-like as he nodded towards the buffet table, "_And_ his sister-in-law, Nevada State Representative Ogterop."

"Ah..." Mathter said quietly, leaning slightly towards Jack, "Would it be rational to presume her prime reason for attending is in relation to a few projects coming to pass in her state that are reciprocal to her public agenda?"

"As a matter of fact," Jack kept his voice level and the surprise out of his beady eyes, but the Mathter's astute guess was spot on, "It does. She's especially concerned about how much she can push for her public environmental concerns while allowing those new... Resort developments... In_ her _district, of course!"

"Hmmm..." Mindbender murmured as he saw the glint in his partner's eyes, "Is she wondering how much she can give, or take?"

"Oh, she wants to appear strong, but conciliatory and interested in both the environment and job creation..." Jack snickered, "She wants those resorts, however, as much as her conservative rival, if not more..."

"I do believe, if I can access the numbers of course," Mathter murmured, his mind already going through dozens of mathematical permutations, "That I can devise the appropriate differential for her... I'm sure the Professor's skills could help with the expected value, as well."

"Indeed!" Mindbender chuckled, "I'm sure a few words to the right... Contributors to the representative's cause could smooth things along... And if she were to imply that Lorwardian construction technology could be of assistance, what with one of the construction companies building a new plant for just that purpose..."

"Professor, Mathter..." Jack shook his head in admiration as he turned to continue escorting them to the table personally, "Don't try for my seat or I'll end you... But... I might just be looking for some like minded advisors in the near future..."

"I'm sure our interactions with you could prove to have a positive direction for everyone in the equation, Mr. Hench!" the Mathter chuckled, his tone of voice that of a villain moving up in the world...

Had Jack looked back, he_ might _have noticed a brief eye contact and the even more subtle, shared wink that passed between the two villains...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Thanks for letting us stay at your place after that mess..." Felix murmured with feeling, "Thought I think people would laugh at Team Possible Bravo being called in to housesit will get a few laughs!"

"Well," Joss countered with a grin, "we_ are _lookin' after a hero's house when 'e has t' be with his wife, right?"

"That's one way to look at it!" Jody 'Mego' Gottlieb's wife, Sandy Gottlieb, smiled tiredly at the two teens. Her voice was deep for a woman's, but in a smoky, feminine manner, although she looked quite tired at that moment. "And it's cool... You two helped out the twins quite a bit..." She nodded to the two exhausted heroes that had demanded to come visit their older brother and their sister in law after their last mission.

"It's all good..." Joss smiled down at the woman, smirking over at the exhausted looking Wegos, "They kinda had t' help us out wit' th' sitch, so..."

"Yeah..." Jody murmured as he came into the hospital room where his wife was still under observation, her labor having been intensive and Jody's unique metabolism requiring the twins stay a little longer, "I..._ We're _okay with you guys visiting for a few more days if needed..."

Sandy chuckled and pulled her husband closer, her green eyes shining out of her every so slightly pudgy face. She'd already heard a few of the nurses who'd had children complaining about how quickly she was losing the fat the babies had added to her body. "That's awesome of you, Jody..."

"Oh, I know..." he muttered, blowing on his knuckles and rubbing them on his chest... And stepping just out of Sandy's reach before she could get a solid pinch on the rear, "Hey, now... I have my looks to worry about, y'know!"

"Well..." Sandy countered, "I'd better be the_ only _one seeing_ that _part of your anatomy!"

"Er..." Jody hesitated, blushing slightly before responding with a somewhat nervous grin, "Yes, ma'am..."

"So whipped..." Jesse chuckled, finally letting everyone know he'd woken up, James continuing, "Shego'd just_ kill _to see it..."

"Shut up!" Jody half hissed, half whined, "C'mon, guys, you_ know _what she'd say..."

"And whose fault was it..." James snickered, Jesse folloing up with a snicker of his own, "For falling in love... With Sandy in the first place?" James winked at Joss and Felix, who had learned quickly to stay out of the quasi-arguments between the youngest three Gottlieb siblings.

Especially when there was a good chance at them having a point. Sandy, while blonde, had a thick fall of long, fine hair, that was straight yet styled in a manner startlingly similar to Shego's. She had a slightly larger nose and her eyes hinted at her half chinese ancestry, but with the shape of her lips, chin and brow, she could easily have passed for Shego's sister. Joss had seen a few pictures of the woman from before her pregnancy, and compared them to a recent picture of Shego taken when she'd visited the twins a month earlier. Sandy was somewhat more muscular looking, in the manner of a gymnast as opposed to Shego's martial artist's body, but their figures were very similar as well.

What was most striking, however, was her brilliant, piercing green eyes. They were expressive and open, yet looked like they could pierce into your soul. Jody had protested, when the twins had pointed out the similarities the last time the argument had popped up, that Sandy had worn contacts when they'd first met. And had shorter hair. Nonetheless, the twins still teased him mercilessly when he started getting too self absorbed.

Such as the moment that was unfolding before the two young members of Team Possible Bravo. "Not listening..." Jody hummed, covering his ears childishly and sticking his tongue out at his younger siblings. What he didn't realize was that he'd stepped back into his wife's range.

"Jody..." she murmured just loud enough for him to hear her and he stiffened as he felt her fingers grabbing onto his rear end threateningly, "What'd I tell you about being a self absorbed ass?"

"Um, that it's as cute as mine is..." he started, and hurriedly finished when he felt her fingers tighten, "But it gets old quick?"

"Good boy!" Sandy murmured, chuckling at him and patting the rear instead of pinching it.

"Hey, no flirting in the hospital room!" Felix joked, earning a swat on the arm from his... His _friend_. His friend that was a girl. His... _Oh, just get over it and admit it!_ he screamed at himself, _She's your _girlfriend_!_ He paused at his internal debate, blinking a couple times before shaking his head. _God, considering her my girlfriend is gonna be a_ lot _harder to get used to than I thought! It wasn't this hard with Zita..._ he chuckled to himself, _Not that I mind, she's awesome, and I'm already in love with her, aren't I..._ His amusement earned a raised eyebrow and mild pout from Joss.

"Whaddya find so funneh, sweet cheeks?" Joss prodded when Felix just stared at her.

"Oh, just thinking..." he murmured, leaning forward to give her a quick kiss on the lips, "That my_ girlfriend _is incredibly beautiful, and that there's a diner down the street she wanted to check out..."

Joss smiled and cupped his cheek, speaking in a low, loving tone, "It's a date, Wheels..."

There was a collective "Awww..." at Joss' statement, which drew a blush from the auburn haired teen. Jody opened his mouth to speak, but the door to the hospital room opened, startled everyone into momentary silence.

"Hey, everybody." Greg 'Hego' Gottlieb offered a half hearted, but contrite smile smile as he looked at his sister in law and middle brother, "How's things going?"

"Hey, Greg..." Sandy nodded to him, a tad irked from the last time he'd spoken to them, but the bashful look in his face gave her the patience to hear him out, "You calmer today?"

The big man sighed, running his hand over his face, "I'm sorry, you two... Seriously, I am, I don't know what came over me."

"Couldn't be working fifty..." Jesse snapped, James picking up after him, "To _sixty_ hours a week... And spending half the night... Chasing has beens... And petty criminals..." The twins waited for Greg to open his mouth, then pounced at the same time, "Could it?".

"I..." Greg had the decency to look ashamed, and nodded, "Yeah... I've been screwing up a lot lately."

"I'll say..." Joss muttered under her breath, drawing a chuckle from Jody.

"Girl's got a point, bro..." Jody pointed at Greg's big chest, "First ya forced those two to break off chasing some up and coming villains... Then a less than a_ week _ago, the cops had that bank robbery in check for once, but you just_ had _to skip out on_ my _kids being born..."

"I know, Jody!" Greg half snapped, then sighed, "Sorry, I guess I deserved that..."

"Yeah!" James snapped, followed by Jesse, just as hotly, "And you weren't around... When we found out Shego got hurt... Either!"

"But you two were..." Greg gave them a proud, if brief smile, "And she was with Team Possible..."

"Thank God f'r small favors..." Joss muttered, "Ya_ do _realize that she was in a bad way, right?"

"I..." Greg grimaced, "I know... And it's probably for the best I stayed out of it..."

"Yeah," Jesse reluctantly agreed, James finishing, "Probably..."

"So, what brings you around?" Sandy interjected with surprising smoothness, trying to stop the argument that seemed bound and determined to happen.

"I had hoped to see my nephews and maybe..." Greg shrugged slightly, "Maybe try and start to make amends for the last few years?"

"Your nephews, you can see..." Jody agreed, "Making amends... You've tried that a few times already, Heeg!" Greg winced at Jody's use of Shego's old nickname for him, "You'd better be sincere this time..."

"I am..." Greg started, then stared at the TV screen that happened to be situated above Joss and Felix's head, "I hate to ask, but could you turn that up? Please? I'm not planning on jumping into this, I promise, but..."

Sandy looked up and saw an interview with a police officer and what looked like a crime scene. Then she saw a familiar face, one she hadn't seen since she and Hego had graduated from high school. Reluctantly, she turned up the volume, gasping as the announcer's voice cut in, "...-olice have released the identities of the deceased. Thirty one year old Juan Christos D'Cruz was found in an alleyway next to twenty two year old Luis 'Smalls' Robledo, not two blocks away from where an apparent accomplice of theirs, Jason 'Maddog' MacAlister died in a vehicle explosion.

"Although details of either crime are sketchy at this time, MacAlister was apparently using a weapon of some kind, tentatively identified as formerly belonging to the supervillain known as Gemini, and suffered the madman's well known wrath. D'Cruz and Robledo, however, seem to have fallen afoul of a different group, as they were found, their bodies, according to a source in Go City's Criminal Investigation Unit, looking quote, '...like they were on the receiving end of the jaws of life...', unquote. Beyond tha-..."

"No!" Greg croaked, staring at the screen in horror as he fell to the floor, landing solidly on his rear end with a loud thump. He wasn't the only one to make a shocked gasp, but he seemed to be the most stunned. Sandy quickly lowered the volume as Greg sat, shaking his head slightly, "I... I just talked to him the other day! He said... He said he was leaving the life, that his kid and wife needed him..."

"Y'all knew 'im?" Joss asked quietly, not wanting to intrude on the huge man's apparent grief, but knowing the police would need to know all the information they could get.

"He..." Greg had tears in his eyes as he turned away from the screen, "He was my best friend in high school..." The superstrong hero swallowed against the lump in his throat, trying to blink tears away as he continued, "He... Fell in with a bad crowd after high school, but... After he got out of prison, he looked me up... We talked... I've been helping him, working to help his wife and little girl move out of the hellhole they were in..."

"Oh, God..." Sandy whispered, "Is Ruby still with hi-..."

"Yes..." Greg muttered in seeming inconsolable grief, "He'd just moved them into the Westview Apartments... He had to do one last thing to make sure his 'boys' were taken care of... But he was gonna _quit_..."

"Greg..." Felix said softly, but urgently, "He was the getaway driver for the breakin at the Madison Pharmaceuticals facility..."

"That's what he meant, then..." Greg clenched his fingers together, looking down at his hands, "If I could have helped a little bit more, he wouldn-... Wouldn't've..."

Jody was standing by his brother's side, a look of indecision on his face. It was plainly visible that part of him relished the pain his big brother was feeling, but only a small part. His expression, though, proclaimed he couldn't help but be a brother. Greg_ was _family, no matter what, after all! With a gentle arm, he reached around the huge shoulders of his eldest sibling and murmured, "His girl and boy are still alright, right, Hego?" Greg looked uncomprehendingly at Jody for a long moment, but finally nodded, "Maybe he was trying to get out, maybe he was having one last hurrah... But I don't want to hear you blaming yourself for someone else's stupid decision..."

"But..." Greg began, then sighed heavily, "I... Guess you're right?" He shook with a mix of repressed rage and grief, "Guys... I don't know if I can forgive myself for failing my friend that easily, though..."

"Hego..." Jody murmured, patting his shoulder, "Let's go see my kids... Your nephews... And let you think about this: sometimes, people die for stupid reasons, sometimes for no reason at all... But if he really was trying to change his life, it's a good thing... And maybe, just maybe, his kid will come out differently than he did, okay? Isn't that worth something?"

"Yeah..." Greg whispered, looking at his hands as if they held the answer to his high school friend's death

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

The woman was... Not cold, exactly... But neither was she warm. Somewhat above chilled was the only way she could think to describe it. Then again, thinking wasn't high on her list of priorities for the five minutes it took her to fully awaken, the thick, congealed fog she remembered being reading from the few subjects used to test the Metabolic Suspension and Containment Chamber. At first glance - inside or out - the device could be easily mistaken for DNAmy's genetic zipper, mostly because it was based on the very same device.

The original designer, Dr. Brigham Löwe - a high ranking agent within Global Justice that had plans to take the top spot of the organization - had modified the genetic zipper with the sole purpose of holding one Shay 'Shego' Gottlieb, when no other prison would ever hold her. It was supposed to have been destroyed after its four tests and one operational use - on Shego, of course - and Dr. Löwe was still jailed for his near disastrous first test.

The superpowered woman had been secreted away from normal authorities and placed in the chamber after her third arrest by Kim Possible. The result was literally hundreds of millions of dollars of damage when she had woken from stasis and destroyed the lab and most of the surrounding building. Thankfully, the superthief hadn't recalled the incident, nor had she killed anyone, but the woman now in the chamber felt it had been the what made her decide to embrace 'evil' instead of merely dally with it. For a normal human, they would be in a dreamless stasis for up to two weeks, then the stasis would break and the person would wake up. For Shego, it had been just under thirty-six hours, and so far as anyone else could, it had been a thirty-six hour long nightmare.

_Okay, I have no idea how she has this... Did she have one made, or was it never destroyed in the first place?_ The woman quickly shook off the question, and the unwelcome memories, as best she could and stared up and down the interior of the chamber. She tried to ignore the tousled look of her deep auburn hair as she leaned close to the seams around the door, studying them with a critical eye, _Snap out of it, you vain bitch! Your looks don't matter now, action does, so concentrate on getting out of here, save the woolgathering for later!_ The thoughts in her head were venomous as she reached out to wipe the condensation off of the inside of the tube, _Now, am I still in the same place, or was she smart enough to move me?_

The answer seemed obvious at first as she wiped the condensation on the inner surface of the window away. She'd been moved alright, though she was fairly certain she was still in France. At least, she was if the newspaper and the warning plaques on the wall being in French were any indication! Unfortunately, that didn't help too much, as she could have been moved to anywhere that had a French company's warehouse._ At least the place looks abandoned at the moment... _She had been stripped down to her bra and panties and her captor had managed to remove most of her lockpicks. By the feel of her underclothes, though, she still had at least two left; whether they would allow her to escape was another question, however...

"No time like the present to find out, I guess..." With that, she carefully felt around the rear of her panties waistband. She found the point where there was the slightest lessening in the material's give; with a specific fold and push, a thin, high strength plastic wire with several small bends in it popped free. She put the piece of plastic between her lips and removed her bra, letting her prodigious bosom hang free. Like with her panties, she felt around the rear top of her bra's strap, smirking when she felt the ever so slight lessening of give.

Popping the hooked piece of plastic out, she put her bra back on before kneeling at the base of the tube's door, working with quick, sure motions. A couple minutes later, when she knew the plastic was at its breaking point, she contemplated stopping... When a click resounded loudly in the enclosed space. "Yes..." she whispered as the hook slipped ever so slightly to the left.

Barely restraining her triumph to that one word, she stood and braced her back against chamber wall, taking care not to jostle the slightly loosened door, before using the chimney climbing technique to get to the top of the door. _Thank god the interior has a textured surface, or I'd be on my ass with all this condensation!_ she chuckled to herself as she carefully braced herself at the top. When she felt solid she began to work, being more careful here than she had been at the bottom. Almost four minutes later, with her powerful legs and lower back quivering from the sustained tension, there was another click and the door swung outwards as silently as a grave.

Carefully she dropped to the floor of the tube and stepped out, bending at the waist to stretch her hamstrings before muscle cramps left her immobilized in pain. She then stretched her lower back, calves and quadriceps, before taking better stock of her surroundings. The first thing she noticed was a chamber similar to her own, but decidedly extraterrestrial in origin. _Lowardian tech?_ she boggled at the presence of an active, alien device in such a run down looking warehouse. She turned to inspect the stasis module and realized immediately that there were several pieces of supervillain tech hooked up to it with implications that utterly terrified her.

_Genetic Sampler? Genetic information impinger? Selective personality engram implanter? Is this a genetic zipper after all?_ With those disturbing questions floating around her mind, the woman taking her place could easily fool anyone into thinking she was... Her thoughts froze as she noticed the last device sitting behind all of them. _Selective mind scanner and depositor..._

_She thought this out better than I thought she had..._ she realized as she walked over to the lattermost device, praying that whoever had used it had yet to remove the last memories scanned and deposited. Luck, it seemed, was with her as she scanned over the memories. _At least she didn't check the truth behind the eyepatch..._ she grimaced as she noticed that half of that memory was, indeed, there, _At least, not completely!_

With a twist of her lips, the woman deleted the information from the solid state drive in the device, then removed it, before popping the case open and removing the memory core as well. She followed suit with the other three devices and made a quick survey of her surroundings. She was disappointed that her uniform was nowhere to be seen, but there was clothing - including a warm jacket - that would fit her, as well as a soft sided briefcase where she could put the memory and storage from the devices...

And a firearm, a Walther PPQ. Grabbing it, she popped the magazine and, after grabbing the magazine, worked the slide; she realized immediately it was a well cared for weapon, which was a relief. She glanced at the magazine and her smirk widened, _Well, well,_ well_! Caliber is... .40 Smith and Wesson, one loaded twelve round magazine and two empties._

She looked around a bit more and found a box of ammunition and a holster designed for the small of the back and immediately put it on. She loaded the spare magazines and stowed the weapon in its holster she placed one spare magazine in the inside pocket of the coat and one in the briefcase. Settled slightly with clothing and a weapon, she glanced back at the tube of Lorwardian tech and walked over to it. The outside was covered in a thin layer of frost, which she quickly went about clearing off. When she did, she barely kept a scream from her throat as she gazed upon the inside. _No way, she's..._

Any further thoughts were dispersed when she heard a vehicle pull up outside. She still had a job to do, but she'd do everything in her power to get some men down here to recover what seemed to be a cryogenic stasis pod! But... First things first.

She made her way over to the door next to the overhead door and hid behind the side that would put the door between her and the intruders when they entered. She let a silent snarl take to her face when she heard the men talking, though she couldn't quite place the language... But knew it wasn't French!

That didn't matter, however. She had a mission: no matter what, she had to get away and find communications gear... And find the bitch that'd put her in this situation! _You'd better hope you're not with them, you bitch!_ she growled in her head, _Because no one,_ no one_, tries to take Betty Director's place!_

**Author's Notes**

Well, the chapter's a li'l smaller than my norm, but I figured I'd give everyone a chance to get back into the swing of my fics... Plus, it's the start of Book II! Looks like it's off to a surprising start, with the criminal's eye view of Team Possible Bravo chasing them down and... Oh, that doesn't bode well, does it?

And then Kim waking up in such a predicament... Not only does she not seem to mind, she seems to be quite smitten, non? And Shego, the tricky, sneaky minx, has it just as bad... And more of the strangeness that is Gemini and Betty? Uh, oh...

And once again, we see the Mathter and his mysterious partner, Professor Mindbender... What are they planning, and does it have much to do with HenchCo? And a cute li'l scene between Joss and Felix, with a look into Mego's life... And devastating news to poor Hego.

Finally, a hidden warehouse, and... Oh, boy...

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work. As well, remember everyone, there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and remember: if ya like a fic, give the author a review!

**Disclaimer:**

This is a work of fiction based on the "Kim Possible" universe. It is written for entertainment purposes only and is a strictly not for profit endeavor. "Kim Possible" and all characters thereof are owned by "The Walt Disney Company and Affiliated Companies"; any other name, individual, product or etc. are registered, trademarked, and/or copyrighted by their respective owners. Should any of the aforementioned or their affiliates request it, I shall change the name of any product, individual or etc. and/or remove this work of fan fiction from the Web.

Individuals, corporations and/or entities without registered, trademarked, and/or copyrighted names, but with a well known and/or public presence that may or may not appear within this work of fiction are considered fair use.

Any original characters, devices, products or etc. that are created by me may be used in "Kim Possible" or other fandom works of fanfiction, fanart or etc. so long as either a) permission sought from and given by me, or b) full disclosure of the source is given in said work. Any original characters not created by me (either by another fanfiction author, artist or etc., or characters not created exclusively by me) are used with permission.

Any use of characters not created by me and that are considered "fanon" characters are either used with permission or should be considered fair use.

Thank you.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Forward**

Well, not much to say this time around, other than sorry for the delay, but RL kinda bit myself and my flow/feel beta, Neo the Saiyan Angel, on the rear! That said... On to the the review replies!

First up is a delayed review reply from chapter 20 of Book I, since it was up after I had chapter 1 of Book II up, the second is for last chapter.

DarkBluePromises17: thanks for the review and your input, as well as the fact that you actually caught a few things that I'd done in the story. I'm also glad that my reply via PM was able to shed a little light without having to give away too much and that you're going to continue to read. I hope you enjoy what I have in store over the course of the second book!

Jimmy1201: ah, yes, that kind of sandwich is, indeed, something very nice to wake up in. And, as to the mystery, well... It'll get more and more twisty as time goes on, trust me.

And now... Chapter 2!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"That..." Bonnie 'Mechanic' Senior cooed as she settled her supersuit down into the rear of the jet belonging to 'The Upperclassmen', "Was amazing!"

"You and Pipes have come along quite amazingly, my dear... Ms. Hall seemed quite put out that we defeated her almost as easily as Ms. Possible and Mr. Stoppable." the smooth, accented voice of Señor Senior, Sr., the former supervillain and now the Upperclassmen's tactical leader 'X' agreed.

"You really think so, Daddy?" Bonnie asked in a surprised and startlingly pleased tone.

"Indeed!" Triple-S answered easily as he settled in beside her easily, his landing even smoother than her own, despite being in his sixties. "Your suggestion of increased training seemed to have paid off quite well!"

"I will need to use the jacuzzi for hours after this, though..." the audible pout in the Upperclassmen's third member, Señor Senior, Jr., known as 'Pipes', drew a sighing chuckle from his wife. The chuckle turned into a worried squeak when she was forced to reach out and support him, his his legs almost giving out upon landing. "Agh, perhaps a massage for my legs, too?"

"I told you not to overwork, baby..." Bonnie muttered with an annoyed yet concerned air, "Yes, I want your legs to match that gorgeous upper body, but..." Junior held up a hand and activated the rear door of their jet, closing it so he could remove his helmet. Bonnie removed his and gave him a gentle kiss on the lips, smiling up at him as if awaiting whatever he wanted to say.

"I may have forgotten to eat the bananas and oranges you suggested?" Junior flushed slightly, "But at least I made the protein shake!"

"You should have added them in with the shake, my son..." Triple-S chuckled, "As I do... Though I do add in the pomegranate and cranberries for the anti-oxidants, as well...

"I know, Father..." Junior sighed as they went about taking their suits off, Junior needing Bonnie's help when his legs locked painfully. He toughed it out impressively, barely groaning, which drew a sympathetic and proud smile from his father. "I will not be missing adding things to assist me in the future..."

"I'm just glad you're all natural, babe..." Bonnie sighed as she rubbed his tense shoulders, knowing from personal experience that rubbing his legs while in spasm, while quickening the relief, would be far more painful for her husband. "And if I ever find out you're using steroids or prohormones..."

"There is no need to worry, my Bon-Bon!" Junior promised, leaning back into her massaging fingers, "Father taught me long ago the negative side effects of such drugs."

"Good..." Bonnie purred, "'Cause I'd hate it if you lost any of my favorite abilities of yours..."

"Do not get too comfortable, you two," Triple-S smiled at the couple, "We have only two hours before we're given an award this evening for our assisting actions in France two weeks ago..." He glanced back at the loving couple and smiled as he retired to his private quarters in the jet, "And I am meeting with Señora DeWitt in Amsterdam the day after tomorrow, so I'm sure you two could find something to occupy your time while I'm there..."

"Oh, I think so..." Bonnie gave a barracuda smirk as she stood and helped him to his feet, noticing that his leg muscles, while no longer tense, were looking a lot fuller than they had a few weeks before, "There's a couple clubs I wanna check out... 'Specially with some of the stuff I'm going to buy in Paris tomorrow night!"

"Are you going to go to any of the world famous coffeeshops?" Junior asked with a touch of concern in his voice.

"No..." Bonnie grimaced, "I don't like pot, baby..."

"But you've partaken in it, yes?" Junior prodded, earning a huff from Bonnie.

"Once, back in high school..." She sighed, leaning against him as he led her to their quarters and the awaiting massage shower and jacuzzi, "The main reason is I hate how it makes me feel, but another kinda big part is 'cause it... I almost made a_ huge _mistake with my last boyfriend before I started dating Brick because I got high."

"This ex-boyfriend person talked you into trying it?" Junior guessed.

Bonnie let out a harsh bark of laughter, much like she would use back in high school, "Oh, yeah... He was cute, a senior and seemed into me for me instead of caring that I was a freshman virgin... And he talked me into what he told me he thought was my first drink and my first try of pot. The drinking I could handle thanks to Con and Lon - I told you about that one - but the pot?" She shuddered as she remembered his hands wandering over her while she was high, and barely able to think straight.

"What happened, my lovely wife?" he asked with bated breath, his admittedly worried expression calming Bonnie quite a bit.

"I kicked him in the balls and ran home..." she half growled, "I got home before my sisters, but Connie was on the phone when she came in. I was hiding upstairs trying not to bawl my eyes out..." She pulled away from Junior and wrapped her arms around herself, shivering at the memories. Her voice became distant as she concluded her explanation, "Then I realized she was talking to_ him _and it had been_ her _plan all along to use him against me..."

"I'm sorry, Bonnie..." Junior whispered, enfolding her with his big, strong arms.

She turned and buried her face in his chest, drawing enough strength to turn her face up to his with a smile, "It's okay, Junior... It's in the past. I mean, seriously, I don't care who does it, y'know, but I won't."

"Well, that is good." Junior sighed, "I can not stand the smell of it, myself." He paused and screwed his face up contemplatively, before smiling and snapping his fingers, "Although I_ have _eaten the cannabis laced confections called brownies... They are wondrous!"

"Oh, God..." Bonnie protested, "No way, no how, Junior! You are_ not _getting high off of pot brownies around me!"

"But, Bonnie!" Junior mock pouted, his smile letting her know he was mostly kidding, "They are so delicious!"

"You wanna sleep in the bed without me for a month, Musclehead?" she raised an eyebrow, her tone and pointed look speaking volumes about his quality of sleep for the next month if he answered wrong.

"They are not that delicious, I guess..." Junior smiled, one that looked somewhat familiar to the brunette, "At least, not as delicious as my favorite Bon-Bon!"

"Oh... Fine, but wipe Stoppable's smirk off your face!" she ordered, blushing in delight at his silly comparison and her tone taking on some of Junior's own jocularity, "I may think he's alright now, and he may not be as goofy looking as he was in high school, but I will _not_ have you looking like him, do you hear me?"

"As my Bonnie wishes!" Junior said... While the very same smile widened to a huge, goofy grin. Before Bonnie could protest further, he reached out and began to tickle her. When she began to squeal out giggles and not so serious protests, his tickling turned into caresses, his smile became more like his normal, suave grin and the squeals became quiet laughter and even quieter moans...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"You take care of yourself, girl..." Shego accepted JJ's warm hug with a slightly misty eyed smile, returning the slaps on the back the small black woman was giving her, "And that girlfriend of yours and her fiancé!" They were at the rear entrance to the Haussman Suites, at the suggestion of the hotel's concierge when it was discovered a particularly aggressive member of the paparazzi was camped out in the lobby of the hotel.

"You take care of yourself, TJ and Josef, JJ..." Shego chuckled, pushing her one time best friend back slightly to favor her with a stern gaze, "He's a good kid..."

"Yeah..." JJ smiled, glancing back at the cute young GJ agent where he was helping TJ load Kim, Ron, Shego and Rufus' things into the Sloth, "I think I might keep him around..."

"Figured you would!" Ron said from behind Shego, chuckling as JJ stuck her tongue out at him, "Hey, don't point that at me; you've_ bragged _about where it's been!"

"Ronnie!" Kim gasped, slapping him on the shoulder, not quite hiding her own misty eyed gaze herself.

"Don't stay it, Stoppable..." Shego warned as Ron tried pouting about the swat, slapping his other shoulder for good measure. All seven of them chuckled, though Ron still tried pout while doing so. Shego stepped back so Kim and Ron could get a hug from JJ and walked over to TJ. "Hey, ya big lug..."

"Hey, Darlin'..." the big man murmured, his voice deeper than normal as a few tears tracked down his cheeks, "You take care of yoahself, y'heah?"

"You take care of JJ and Josef, boy." Shego ordered firmly as he enfolded her into a hug, "Y'do and I promise not to be a stranger, 'kay?"

"Bettah not, Darlin'..." he whispered to her, "Bettah not..."

"Give my love to the wife and kids, eh?" Shego murmured, her eyes shining brightly as she stepped back, gently punching his chin. Turning to Josef, she saw he was holding a hand out and grabbed it, but before he could shake her hand, she pulled him into a hug, "Hey, Newbie... Since you got promoted and stuck with cross training with their squad, listen to 'em, and stick by 'em, got it?"

"Ja..." was all the startled agent could muster, startled by the expression of friendship from the older woman, "I will. And I'll make sure to treat JJ right, too..."

"Good, I don't have to give ya the best friend threats, then!" Shego laughed as she pulled back. She was still surprised how close she'd gotten to the young agent, in less than three days considering him an unofficial little brother. She chucked him on the shoulder as Kim, Ron and Rufus came over to say their goodbyes to the two men, stepping over to the Sloth to lean nonchalantly against the rear corner.

"You okay, Shay?" JJ asked as she took up position close to her, watching as Ron and Josef shared a disturbingly complex handshake and fist bump routine.

"Yeah..." Shego smiled, her eyes softer than they had been since before Harley had died. JJ glanced over and raised an eyebrow, as if asking for more information. Shego shook her head fondly and continued, "Just... Glad. Happy, honestly." She took a lung expanding breath and let it out, leaning her head back to look at the surprisingly clear sky, "Glad that I got to get together with you and TJ... To catch up with you two... Glad I met Josef... Glad that Kimmie and I got together... Glad that Ronnie's okay with it..."

"You're really in love with Red, ain'cha?" JJ chuckled lightly when Shego nodded, "I hope you don't mind me saying, but... I haven't seen you this relaxed... This _happy_... Since Sarge was alive."

"Yeah..." Shego's smile faltered for a brief moment, then came back even brighter as Ron glanced over at her with a wink and Kim smiled at her, "Yeah, I guess I am... It's so weird, though, JJ..."

"What's that?" the shorter woman prodded after a moment.

"I've known her for five years..." Shego mused distantly, crossing her arms over her chest, "And except for working together a few times, and a week with my mind flipped upside out and inside down," JJ couldn't help but snort at the rather off manner Shego used to characterize her time as Miss Go, "I've only been friendly with her, _as myself_, for two weeks... Just over a week if you count my time in a coma! But..." She dropped her gaze back to Kim with an intense, confused expression, "I already love her as much as I ever loved Harley... Maybe..."

"Maybe?" JJ asked into another moment of silence, seeing Shego's face relax a bit as Kim felt her gaze and turned to make her way over.

"Maybe more..." Shego whispered so quietly only JJ could hear, then raised her voice to address Kim, "You guys ready, Princess?"

"Yup." Kim answered simply as she came up to Shego and leaned against her, wrapping her arms around the older woman's neck to give her a quick hug and a brief, but plainly loving peck on the lips, "Whenever you are, Shay..."

Shego blinked at the blunt and very public display of affection, but the brief, radiant smile she'd worn a moment before came back, though tinged with concern, "Hey, Kimmie... You sure you're okay with being that public about," she waved a hand back and forth between them, "us?"

"It's nothing I'm ashamed of, Shay." Kim assured her by leaning back slightly and grabbing Shego's hands in hers, giving them a gentle squeeze, "Unless it makes you uncomfor-..."

"Hardly." Shego interrupted, letting Kim's hands go and resting them gently on the red-head's shoulders. Kim crossed her arms across her chest to place a hand on each of the older woman's, and the former thief leaned in for a slightly longer kiss, breaking it to murmur, "As long as you two're fine with it, I could care less who knows..."

"Damn..." JJ chuckled, bumping her hip into Shego's, "Girl, you_ are _in love!"

"Didn't I say that a moment ago?" Shego laughed, blowing a raspberry at her old friend. She almost jumped when she felt two rather large hands cover both her hands and Kim's.

She glanced to Kim's left, where Ron had leaned down to rest his chin on the heroine's shoulder, gazing into his caring hazel eyes. Her smile dropped ever so slightly as she heard a voice screaming incoherently in the back of her head, but a gentle squeeze to their hands by the blond brought it back and he said softly, "Hey, remember my motto: 'Never be normal!'"

"Doofus..." Shego chuckled softly, and Ron joined her as both women rolled their eyes and leaned forward just enough to kiss Kim's cheek.

He then surprised Kim, Shego and JJ as he slipped Shego's right from under his fiancée's to kiss the older woman's knuckles gently, "You're both my ladies, even if all we ever are is what we are now, Shay... I'd never stand in the way of Kim's love and happiness, and I'd never ask either of you to love each other less. If that means the whole world knows, so be it, right?"

"You...' Shego murmured as he set her hand back down on Kim's, placing his on top of hers and giving another squeeze. There was a slight catch in her throat at the trust Ron was putting in both her and Kim and an odd sensation flowed down her spine at the caring, perhaps even loving gaze he was leveling at her, "Are too hopeless of a romantic, Sport..."

"He is what he is..." JJ interjected, beating Ron to one of his favorite sayings, "And that's probably the most beautiful thing I've ever heard someone say..."

"Oh, no..." Josef chuckled, "You sure you want him to get a big head like that, Jonisha?"

"What?" Shego gasped, then favored the obviously embarrassed, ebony hued woman with a huge smile, "Two days and he already knows your first name, JJ?"

"Y'should've heard 'em in theah room last nahght..." TJ murmured with a sugar-won't-melt-in-my-mouth expression on his face, "Ah didn't think we'd get heah in tahm t'see the three of ya off..."

"Oh, shut up!" JJ squealed, hiding her face in her hands as a chuckling Josef put an arm around her, "You know how I am, Shay! That's just mean to imply anything!"

"Uh, huh..." Shego agreed with an ironic smile and Kim fell into her chest to hide the fact that she was laughing from everyone, "So when should we expect wedding bells?"

"Hush..." JJ said a bit more seriously, "I like him, but we'll take things as they come, alright?"

"Okay, okay..." Shego chuckled as Kim pulled back from her chest and favored the two with a devilish wink.

"Just take care of each other, and things'll work out." Kim promised, with agreeing murmurs from everyone else.

"Promise..." the two love-birds nodded at her, JJ leaning back into the agent and TJ moving to stand next to them, "Drive safe and let us know when you get to your next destination, alright?" JJ continued, nodding at the trio who were only then disengaging from each other.

"We will!" Kim nodded to them as she walked to the driver's side door. She stretched, then let out a big, jaw cracking yawn, blushing slightly she looked at Ron and Shego, "Um, I didn't sleep too much last night, would you guys mind driving?"

"Ron complained about not sleeping at breakfast, but I'm fine..." Shego murmured, earning an agreeing nod from Ron. Kim tossed her the keys and jumped into the rear seat, Ron taking shotgun. Shego smiled as the blond prepared the Ruf-pod, the clothing challenged rat rummaging around in the naked mole rat safety cage, and popping back up with a mole rat sized pair of sunglasses.

"Well, Rufus is obviously ready!" Ron chuckled as he and Kim belted up, and he lowered the seat back slightly.

"Hope you don't mind if I pick the road tunes?" Shego asked, and both teens shrugged, Rufus letting out an enthusiastic agreement with her, "Alright... You guys rest up, I'll wake you up when we hit the first rest stop..."

"Okay..." Kim agreed through another yawn, pulling a pillow out of one of the Sloth's emergency compartments and fluffing it behind her head, "Just be careful with my car, Lover..."

"No problem, KP." Shego chuckled, enjoying the private nickname Kim had chosen, as well as her own use of Ron's nickname for Kim but still getting used to it. The four of them shared a chuckle as the older woman paired her music player to the car's Bluetooth and chose her 'Old School Road Tunes' folder. She listened to the radio for long enough to get a traffic report. With no reports of _stau_, the German word for traffic jams, she smiled, switching back to the Bluetooth just as she hit the unlimited speed section of the A9. With a smile, she pressed play and eased into the accelerator, nodding her head in time Motörheads' 'Ace of Spades'...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Mom, Dad?" Jim asked quietly as they finished the last of their breakfast together before continuing the tour of the new facilities. The elder Possibles and the twins, Jim and Tim, were sitting in the Middleton Space Center's new cafeteria, recently rebuilt after the Lorwardians had destroyed over half of the sprawling complex during their invasion. The twins had almost been forced to request the day off, but due to a scheduling conflict at the school, the day had been turned into a teacher's in service day. Unfortunately, the breakfast had been a surprisingly somber affair, as the cafeteria had a commanding view of the Space Center... And the few areas still undergoing reconstruction.

"Yes, boys?" Anne asked quietly, not used to her boys being so quiet and serious.

"Do you hate Kim and Ron being together?" Tim asked, a worried expression on his face.

"No boys..." James sighed, a chagrined look on his face, "You're asking because of what happened back in July?"

"Well, yeah," Jim began, Tim continuing for him, "And all of the arguments... You two had over the last few months... But, well, when you... And Kim talked the other day... Everything seemed fine again?"

"Your father, as well as Kim, had some problems." Anne said into a brief silence, favoring the boys with an affectionate but slightly troubled gaze. She knew they worried about their sister, despite their often antagonistic relationship with her, yet her motherly instincts screamed that there was something more to their questions, "Someone, we're trying to figure out who... Messed with their minds."

"Yeah..." Tim nodded as he and Jim looked around furtively before sharing a look with his brother, giving their parents the impression of a conversation going on between them, who continued after him, "We know a little bit... But not much? We kinda talked to Wade about it when... We were discussing the fuel cutoff problem in the Sloth." They glanced at each other and gulped nervously, as if unsure if they could, or should, continue.

"What's wrong, boys?" James asked, reaching out with his right hand to place it gently on Jim's left shoulder while Anne mirrored him with Tim.

"I presume it's about your sister?" Anne asked, trying not to laugh softly when the boys flinched slightly, worried suddenly.

"Well..." Jim started, Tim swallowing before continuing, "We saw some... Stuff online?" They looked between each other again, Jim continuing before his brother, "And we're worried... That whatever happened... Might've caused problems with... Kim and Ron."

"Kim said everything was fine when she and James talked, boys." Anne reassured them softly, patting Tim's shoulder again before returning her hand to the table and taking the last forkful of the wonderful breakfast shepherd's pie the cafeteria staff had baked.

The boys glanced at each other yet again, and both Possible parents got the impression of a conversation, before Tim sighed and pulled out a Mk. V Kimmunicator. It was something they'd been working on with Wade and Drew for Team Possible, and was the size of a somewhat small tablet computer, with a screen measuring about eight inches diagonally. Jim called up a program and suddenly their area was filled with a very soft white noise while the sounds of the surrounding cafeteria dropped significantly. Tim sighed and started their worried, dual voiced explanation, "Before we tell you... What we're worried about... We need to know... Exactly what happened? And if... You and Kim hated each other... Or if you hated Ron... Or if either of you... Wanted to do something... That hurt each other?"

James sighed and shook his head, "Boys..." Staring into his son's serious eyes, Anne knew they wouldn't let this drop, nor would they explain their worry to their parents. She placed a gentle hand on James' wrist and nodded at him. Looking at his sons, the man sighed again and began his explanation, "We're not sure exactly what happened, or who did it. Kimmie-cub and I were both... Influenced in a way that our personalities were modified. Ima Hauptfall, Drew's counselor, had an initial theory that was both proven accurate and inaccurate at once, that it was like post hypnotic suggestion done over the course of months or years, but had happened in the course of a few weeks. Or in my case, a few days."

"But it wasn't, right?" Jim said softly.

"Not completely, anyway?" Tim concluded, and Anne gave a rueful, but proud smile to her sons for their observational skills.

"No, not completely." Anne leaned forward, knowing her sons had a lot of both technical and medical knowledge, "It was partially right, but also, there were... Indications of drug induced suggestion, or almost more accurately, mad science induced suggestions. The chemical makeup in their brains were modified in such a way as to make their neurological pathways follow the thought process the suggestions intended. It was as if their brains had been rewired, but without changing the physical location of the neurological pathways."

"So..." Jim said, then paused to look at his brother. They nodded as one after a moment, and Jim continued, "You're saying that... Someone managed to rewire their brains... Their_ personalities_... As if someone physically rewired the synaptic connections... At the end of the axons... Or even just... Between dendrite structures... But using chemical modifiers to do so... Without actually moving them?"

"Yes, exactly." Anne nodded, giving a faint, but proud smile as she regarded her sons in a serious, scientific manner, "As well, it would have been missed by most scans, or dismissed as a 'natural progression' of a person's personality had we not had such recent scans of your father and Kim."

"Okay..." Jim said in a quiet, but nonetheless angry tone, while Tim continued in a slightly louder, more blatantly peeved fashion, "Someone tried to... Make Kim and Dad... Hate each other... Or possibly make Kim, er... Evil? No longer a hero?"

"We're... Not sure, boys, but we think that was the intent." James said softly, "But... Drew, Ima and your mother devised a way to... Fix it, for the most part? Not too long after the mission they took in Germany, where Miss Shego got hurt..."

The elder of the Possible men at the table smiled slightly, and Anne was struck at how open he was with the boys and how he seemed as concerned for Shego as Drew had been. Of course, that reminded her of how their little Kimmie-cub had been so worried for her friend, as happy as James had been that her daughter could forgive the woman who had been a bitter enemy for so long._ At least Drew's assurances Shego's changed wholeheartedly were true... _Now if only she could get over this nagging feeling that her daughter was reacting as if it were Ron that had been hurt. _Or... That she's suffering residual programming that is leading her to hide something like that!_

Shaking her head slightly, she returned her attention to his boys when they spoke, "Why do you think that... Was the intent? Other than the... Potential that mad science tech was used?"

"Well..." James drew out a bit, rubbing his chin, "At Drew's suggestion, we had the hospital run a scan on Shego; or more accurately, a series of scans." He glanced away in thought, "Your mother and Drew noticed some... Similarities to what had happened to Kimmie-cub and myself over the time of her healing. It seems that when her healing is acting in a more intense fashion than normal, it not only affects the her body, but any potential problems in her brain, but there were definite, but almost unnoticeable changes over the week she was induced into coma.

"It seems, however, that her... Conditioning, if you will... Has been in place for a long time." James grimaced, shaking his head in disgust, "With her healing in overdrive, it was able to start repairing some of the damage, but not much, and it takes times. It's almost as if when she is wounded or her mind was grossly impacted - such as with the Neural Compliance chips or the Moodulators, and even the events after the Li'l Diablos - her healing has a better chance against such long term conditioning." He looked back at the boys, his gaze troubled, "I'm sure you can see my concerns with this, yes?"

"Yeah..." Jim murmured quietly, Tim continuing in a thoughtful tone, "Under normal circumstances... Or with a regular human... It'd be essentially permanent after a certain point... And very hard to work around before then... Without technological help... Right?" James and Anne nodded, and Tim picked up the line of thought, "But with Shego... Someone had to be there... For a long time... Doing this programming..." Jim glanced at Tim and they blinked after a moment, "But the Neural Compliance chips... And possibly our countermeasures... As well as the Moodulators and Reverse Polarizer... And Kim kicking her into the BN headquarters tower... Kick started her healing power's effects... On her brain each time..."

"Which explains why she was getting less and less 'evil', and more 'good' over time." Anne nodded, but held up a cautionary finger, "This is just speculation, boys, and we're waiting for an MRI she has scheduled at the end of the week to see if her mind's healing is progressing steadily, slowing or stalled."

"And this leads me to another point." James murmured, "Kimmie-cub and I talked for three hours the first day after our treatments... It was strained at first, but... By the end of the first half hour, it was as if nothing had happened..." Jim and Tim stared at him almost incredulously, "For both of us, it was more like... A mild tiff, instead of a full on, hate filled argument that almost resulted in Kimmie-cub disowning me." He nodded when the boys eyes widened in shock, and shrugged, "Essentially, everything was back to normal."

"So Kim wouldn't..." Jim started, his voice sounding stronger, less uncertain, as did Tim's when he continued after his brother, "Do something, erm, something _different_? Like, if something happened... Or something about her changed... It wouldn't be because of what was done? Or what was done_ to _her... It'd actually be her?"

"Yes," Anne nodded with calm certainty, "I'd stake my own reputation on it." She sighed as she realized why they'd asked that question, "This has something to do with something you two found regarding Kimberly and Ronald... And probably Shego, as well, isn't it?"

"Yeah..." Jim said nervously, Tim continuing with less nervousness, but some concern, "Mom, Dad... We know you don't... Like us checking some sites... On the Internet..."

"Boys..." Anne sighed, interrupting them before they could go further, "Just what has you so worried? And what did we tell you about those sites after the last time they posted something questionable about your sister?"

"We haven't done anything!" Jim protested, only for Tim to add a dark, "Yet..."

"Now, boys..." James started, but an indignant interruption from Tim startled him into silence.

"No, Dad!" Jim snapped, "Don't 'Now boys...' us right now, just hear us out!" Tim's voice was unwontedly serious, as but Jim's was slightly apologetic for his snapping when he continued, "We found out... From a trusted source... About a story that's going to be... On the one news show tomorrow night... That's the TV side... Of that hero rumor mill site... Y'know, the site that one bi-..." Jim paused, flushing slightly as both parents raised an eyebrow, but pushed on before they could comment, "_Woman_ runs... It'll be put on the site at the same time... As it's on the show... Just like when she tried to say... That Kim was asking favors... When that teacher caused her problems? And we had Wade check it out... And she_ supposedly _got her information... From a fansite in Germany..."

"So this is about more bunk from that sad excuse of a journalist woman, Deegan Tripe?" James sighed, fuming when his sons nodded in confirmation, "I never understood the appeal of that kind of so called journalism! Why, in_ my _day, journalists needed _facts_-..."

"While she_ may _blow things out of proportion," Anne interrupted the coming tirade with a stern but caring tone, "There's usually at least some bit of truth to her reporting..." James glanced at her and, as if reading her mind, sighed and nodded; Anne knew that was as worried as she was, considering one of her conversations with Kim earlier in the week, but she hoped she was wrong about the annoying 'journalist' and her likely opinions. "Or she can realistically claim unreliable sources, depending on what her report says, of course!" Anne concluded, and her sons sighed and nodded, "And I have a feeling you want us to look the other way if you two and Wade decide to..._ Deal _with her."

"Only if she's spreading bull." Tim said firmly, Jim nodding in agreement, "Just like we promised the last time... And only if you and Wade say it's okay." They glanced at each other and nodded as if happy with their delivery, "We weren't going... To do anything illegal... But we don't want... Anyone hurting or embarrassing Kim!"

"Because only you can do that boys?" James asked with deceptive mildness. He was exceedingly pleased when the boys shook their heads firmly, both flushing slightly.

"No, not exactly, Dad." Jim's tone was, again, unwontedly serious, and Tim's was, if anything, more so when he continued, "Yes, we like teasing Kim... But we've kinda learned... That the kind of teasing... We did... Could be really bad for her..." A pause, a glance, and a resigned nod, "We won't stop... Small teasing, y'know... Normal brother and sister stuff... But we kinda decided... That since even_ Ron_ and_ Drew _have grown up quite a bit... We should, too..."

Anne smiled slightly at their surprisingly mature decision, wondering for a moment if this had something to do with their increased safety with their home experiments. She opened her mouth to say something, then snapped it closed for a moment, as she realized they'd sidestepped her question about what had them so worried. She glanced at her husband and raised an elegant eyebrow ever so slightly, as if asking if he'd noticed as well. James glanced back, the corners of his mouth turning down even less noticeably than her eyebrow. Her right shoulder shrugged minutely and her head tilted slightly towards her sons, to which James nodded at her.

Turning her full attention back towards the twins, she allowed her face to take on a slightly stern grimace as she pushed her boys for an answer to that question, "Jim... Tim... I know that you're trying to protect your sister, but what, exactly, has you so... Worried?"

"Well..." Tim sighed in a drawn out manner, glancing at Jim, who sighed as well. Jim pulled out his own Mk V Kimmunicator, biting his lip, while Tim went to work on his, his tongue stuck out while sucking lightly on his upper lip. Tim seemed to be hacking into a website - she hoped he was just surfing to a secure website Wade had set up - and while Anne wanted to admonish him, something about their behavior had her worried enough to let it slip... For now, at least. Then Jim continued their conversation, "It's just that she put a picture... Like we said, taken from a German fansite that... Had nothing but awesome to say about Kim and Ron... And Shego...

Anne and James drew closer together to take a look at the screen. Jim's Mark V showed a German fansite, 'Ron Stoppable, Kim Possible and Team Possible's #1 German Fansite'. The front page showed a picture of a very high tech looking aircraft with GJ markings atop a fancy hotel's helipad with its rear drop door opened and a man dressed in a US Army uniform holding onto the cargo straps. Kim, Ron and Shego were dashing towards the ramp, and the translated caption above the picture proclaimed, "With the similar uniforms, could it be that the beautiful superthief become hero, Shego, after saving the world from the alien invaders, has joined forces with Team Possible? We can only hope!"

Below that was an excerpt from the full news story, "This picture was taken a few hours before a joint news release from Global Justice and the Federal Criminal Police Office about a plot by an unnamed supervillain. Team Possible assisted in stopping both the supervillain and an attack by the October Front for Worldwide Liberation on the supervillain's lair and on a train rumored to have been carrying a deadly neurotoxin. While it was further rumored that Shego had been injured in the confrontation, pictures taken by fans at Munich's Oktoberfest showed the heroic foursome to be in good health..."

There were a few comments listed below the picture and the snippet from the full news story, above the 'See More Comments' button. One said, "This is amazing! Four of my favorite heroes (one MUST include Rufus!) together, they will be an amazing team!", with almost a thousand thumbs up. Another, more tongue in cheek comment followed, "I hope so, especially if they're all going to wear THOSE uniforms!" The comment had four hundred and thirty three thumbs up, with another updated as she watched, which for some reason didn't surprise Anne.

Then Jim clicked the 'Recent Pictures' link and scrolled to the bottom when the page that came up. There were dozens of pictures on the page showing several pictures of varying quality and situations. Several of the pictures showed Kim, Ron, Rufus and surprisingly Shego signing autographs or posing with their fingers in 'V' signs or thumbs up, some merely candid moments showing them being exactly what they were: two teens and a slightly older friend enjoying the Oktoberfest celebration at its home city.

One thing that Anne couldn't help but notice was the presence of the older woman. In pictures that were more than a singular member of the group posing by themselves or with a random fan, she was always close to them and always had at least a friendly expression - or at least similarly as tolerant as Kim's when Ron was acting goofy - on her face. Then she two pictures, joined side by side as one image, that she knew beyond_ any _doubt, she was going to see on Deegan Tripe's website.

The left picture on the joined image showed Shego was leaning back against a wall in a beer tent. She was dressed quite nicely and stood next to a nearly ebony skinned woman smaller than Kim and a veritable mountain of a man. While the latter two had close cropped hair and obvious military bearings, their manner around Shego and their genial smiles indicated they were close to her. The former thief's gaze, despite the black woman elbowing her lightly, was on both Kim and Ron, the blond giving his fiancée a simple kiss on the cheek. Instead of the sardonic smirk or eye roll Anne would have expected of Shego when she'd worked for Drew, or the sickly sweet expression of happiness of Miss Go, Shego wore a content, open and, she dared to think,_ loving _smile.

A smile that spoke volumes and set off the little bells in the back of Anne's mind... It was the same gaze Ron had held for Kim... And later, the gaze Kim held for Ron, not long before they'd gotten together. Then she stared at the next picture and felt a tingle of worry slide down her back as those very same bells got louder.

The right hand picture, and potentially the one that Tripe would harp on the most, was of the three of them together. Ron was standing behind Shego's chair to her right, bracing himself with a hand on the pale woman's left shoulder and the table while leaning over her opposite shoulder. Shego had a cat that ate the canary smile on her face as Ron gave Kim a kiss that would have been worth six months of detention in for violating Steve Barkin's PDA policy in high school... And would have had James contemplating speeches involving black holes and space probes a year and a half earlier.

What was startling was that Kim not only had her right arm around Shego's neck in a very familiar manner, but she was sitting in the older woman's lap. Anne could only guess, but she had a feeling that if the camera had taken the picture a moment earlier, Shego's arm wouldn't have have been supporting Kim in her kiss with Ron; instead, she felt, it would have been draped possessively over Kim's shoulder and the arm Kim had out to cup Ron's face would have been around Shego's neck... And they probably would have been snuggled together as if they'd been dating for months! As it was, the support she offered Kim for her kiss, and the seeming enjoyment of her daughter's kiss with Ron was startling...

_Kimmie-cub and Shego are utterly besotted with each other!_ Anne blinked, her heart briefly dropping into her stomach before realizing something else. The hand on Shego's shoulder was not that of a friend, or a convenient place of support. No, Ronald Stoppable, she knew, wasn't a possessive sort, but he wasn't above staking a claim, or making a simple touch a statement of his feelings. Had she not known him for just under a decade and a half, she'd have dismissed her thoughts, but she did know him... And knew damn good and well what that little gesture was communicating more than anyone outside of one Kimberly Anne Possible.

_Whatever's happening,_ Anne concluded, _Ronald's declaring his feelings as well... And Kimmie-cub and Ron are every bit as in love with each other as ever, and she still has his ring..._ Anne was a very rational person and as such, knew that the heart was not only very fickle, but very, very open at once. She hadn't been much of an experimenter during her time at Upperton Medical University - outside of a few drunken kisses and fumbling touches with an attractive exchange student from Eastern Europe - but she'd known several people that lived such lifestyles full time. She also knew her little girl and Ronald very well, thus knowing that her presumption of emotion was spot on.

And now, she couldn't help but feel thankful for being friends with such open minded people in her youth. Not to mention loving her very out,_ very _lesbian mother and everything she represented! She wasn't disgusted by any stretch of the imagination at the thought of her daughter being in love with Shego, nor was she truly disturbed by the idea of her being in a relationship with both Ron and Shego at the same time. What made her stomach drop was the utter conviction her daughter felt towards things like this; she knew, with her Possible bull headedness, that her daughter would never hide this, especially if the emotions were as strong as she felt they were.

"Well..." James harrumphed, his lips pursed in concern, "I guess that answers what you two are worried about..."

Tim nodded as Jim lowered his Mark V and waited until both parents looked at Deegan Tripe's page, 'The Truth Behind the Heroes Report'. Just as Anne had feared, that last picture was on her website's main page, and when Tim clicked the 'Read Full Article' button, more of the pictures were there for perusing. Tim and Jim started speaking in their normal, back and forth manner, their tone becoming more and more aggravated, "Now this isn't supposed to go live... Until sometime tonight during or after her newscast... But as you can see... That_ woman _said some harsh stuff... Like Kim's turning into a... To quote, '...regular, everyday alcoholic college girl...', unquote... Just because she's drinking beer at Oktoberfest with Ron... And that she's obviously, to quote, '...finally getting tired of Ron... And is starting to experiment with her obvious lesbian leanings... By experimenting with her former arch-nemesis...', unquote"

"That leaves an important question, boys..." James murmured in as delicate a tone as he could, his face troubled but, to Anne's surprise, not disgusted, angry or resigned so much as worriedly accepting. She briefly wondered if he was seeing the same thing she was, before she realized that the look on his face was the same one when they'd first learned of Kim and Ron's engagement. "If she is in a relationship with Shego and Ronald, would it bother you two?"

Anne smiled and reached over to place a gentle, thankful hand on his, but kept her attention on her boys as they answered, "Of course not!" Jim's tone was shocked at the very question, Tim's somewhat devilish as he continued, "You always raised us to accept people... As long as they're not hurting people... Even if they're a little weird..." The two looked at each other and smiled a bit, before finishing together, "And our sister's_ very _weird!"

"Boys..." Anne said firmly, earning slightly chagrined smiles from them, "Be that as it may... We all know when Kim's... Crushing on someone, and from these pictures..."

"We know, mom!" Jim pleaded urgently, Tim's voice sounding just as worried, "But she's planning on spreading_ lies _about Kim... When she's not even around... To answer in a reasonable time!" They glanced at each other nervously, sighing as they both said, "And we think she was tipped off by a villain..."

"Why do you think that, boys?" Anne's voice was sharp, and James picked up on her tangent easily.

"You didn't do something we'd consider improper, did you?" the older Possible man's voice was firm and unyielding, causing both boys to wilt slightly.

"Not..." Jim started, Tim continuing in a slightly more contrite voice, "Exactly?"

Tim wilted further at a raised eyebrow from his mother, and Jim jumped in, speaking the first full sentence they'd heard from the boys in some time, his words almost stumbling over each other in his haste to speak, "A contact of Team Possible's contacted Wade and Wade asked us to do the checking for him since he had to go with Drew and Vivian to a meeting with a client!"

"So..." James sighed slightly, glancing at his wife. Anne saw his slight grimace, the slight drawing together of his eyebrows and the resigned - and ever so slightly amused - crinkling of his eyes and nodded in an almost unnoticeable manner, "You were essentially doing work for Team Possible." Jim and Tim nodded, each with a slightly nervous gulp, and James smile softly, "Then out with it, boys..."

"The contact is the former..." Tim started in a slightly uncertain tone, but Jim's voice was rock solid, "Mobile camera man, Donny Kaczka... He apparently tipped Wade... During Summer's weather machine plot... And Wade kind of set up... His working for Tripe's company... As her editor in chief... So news about Team Possible... Was kept to a minimum or couldn't be twisted..."

"And this time," Anne concluded with a sharp nod, "That's not possible."

"No, Mom." Jim confirmed with a growl in his voice. Tim's anger was more visible on his face, but his voice seemed calmer as he continued, "But he told us that... The email came from a company... Called Twin Cities Management... And the letterhead had a greek numeral..." Jim paused and glanced significantly at Tim, who nodded and murmured, "It's a front for the WWEE... And the last anyone knew... He was in Europe planning something huge..."

"And this would potentially force Kim and Ron to come back home." Anne nodded with a disgusted sounding snort, "For damage control, if nothing else."

"Exactly!" Tim hissed, but smiled with Jim as his brother continued, "But we... That is, us, Wade, Don and even Summer... Have an idea..."

"Well, I don't know, boys..." James said as if he'd figured out what they were planning, drawing the words out, "Miss Gale wasn't the nicest person with what she said about Kim and Ron when she was at trial..."

"True, James," Anne countered, "I do think she came around after Kimmie-cub and Ronald spoke on her behalf at her trial and got her sentence reduced to parole and time served... And her coverage of the events after the Li'l Diablos. Remember, she hailed them as heroes? And she managed to get a spot as an investigative journalist after she started working with Bethany Waters..."

"And now she does those interviews..." James nodded, "But do you think Kim and Ron would be ready for this?"

"We'll have to call her tomorrow if things work out..." Tim murmured, sighing slightly as Tim concluded, "But only if we have your blessing... And maybe your help? Because we'll have to do this away from Wade."

"So Team Possible isn't implicated..." James smiled but glanced at his wife. Anne's smile startled him; it was predatory and deep in her eyes, he saw a churning, hateful rage that someone would dare to harm her daughter. He swallowed slightly, which caught Anne's attention and causing her to drop her face into neutrality, as well as calming her somewhat. He sighed in relief and quirked a single eyebrow.

Anne nodded and turned to the twins, "We'd love to help with this project, boys! And I know two people that can help us out, and just happen to be a few hours away by Team Possible favor..." Anne smiled again and this time it was almost the normal, sweetly supportive smile of Anne Possible, proud mother of three... If you ignored the growling lioness lurking in the sapphire depths of her eyes...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shego slowed from two hundred and forty kilometers per hour to a respectively paltry one hundred and thirty as she glanced at the Sloth's GPS display. _About another kilometer 'til the rest stop..._ she mused in annoyance. They were a little under halfway between Würzburg and Frankfurt, Germany and her bladder was screaming at her to stop. _Shut up, you could have said something before we passed Würzburg or the last rest area, you know!_

"Great..." she sighed, shaking her head.

"What's up, Sheegs?" Ron asked, making the superpowered woman jump slightly, "Sorry!"

"It's okay, Doofus..." she chuckled, "I've slowed down, so jumping isn't too much of a threat!" She leaned back slightly and glanced over at the still awake member of Team Possible, "Thought you were asleep..."

"Nah..." Ron chuckled, pointing out at the forest surrounding them, "Just watchin' the country side. It reminds me of home, actually..."

"Yeah, Germany's beautiful..." Shego nodded, "But so's a lot of Colorado, so I'm not surprised you're feeling a bit homesick."

"Kinda, but not really?" Ron mused aloud, shifting in his seat so he didn't have to talk over his shoulder at her, "Honestly? I've lived in Colorado since I was four... I love it, but I'm glad KP decided to go to GCU..."

"Quite a change, but the mountains around Go City are a lot like Colorados..." Shego nodded with a slightly distant smile, seemingly at a loss for conversation as she slowed even more and pulled into the service area. On reflex, she checked the fuel gauge before remembering she was in Princess' Sloth. Although it did require fuel, it required far less than most vehicles. _Just over three quarters of a tank, and they haven't refueled since they got here..._

"I need to piss, how're you guys?" she asked as she heard Kim stirring in the back.

"How l'ng 'til C'logne?" Kim moaned in her half awake, half asleep state as she glanced around and saw the convenience store.

"A few hours yet..." Shego answered, and Kim nodded.

"I'm st'll good." Kim replied, yawning and adding with a pout, "C'n y'get me somethin' t'eat? I'm h'ngry..."

"No problem, Princess..." Shego chuckled, glancing at what was available, "C-store or Bueno Nacho?"

"Whatev'..." Kim mumbled and fell back into a half slumber.

Shego glanced at Ron with a raised eyebrow and Ron chuckled at the unasked question, "She does this on missions sometimes... She'll eat even when mostly asleep and in turbulence..." He glanced over at the somewhat busy Bueno Nacho and shrugged, "I'll grab the munchies if you wanna hit the bathroom?"

"Thanks..." Shego murmured with feeling as she grabbed the key and stood from the Sloth with a back popping stretch. When Ron was out, she locked the supercar and made her way towards the restrooms. Looking around the area, she still marveled at how similar the places in Germany were to some of the 'service islands' along some of the tollways in the United States; especially along the I-80/90 corridor between Chicago, Illinois and Youngstown, Ohio, a route she was rather familiar with during her time between quitting the hero business and becoming a superthief. The thought brought a smile to her face as she made her way to an empty stall.

Finishing her business quickly and washing up, she was almost surprised when she walked out of the restroom and saw a couple sitting at a table, huddled close to a laptop. Normally, Shego wouldn't have paid them any mind, but something about their bearing and a strange sense of déjà vu that washed over her kept her attention. She made sure not to look at them, but made sure to keep them in her line of sight.

She jumped slightly when Ron's happy voice intruded on her surveillance, "Hey, Sheegs, think you could hold these while I use the faculties?"

"Facilities, Doofus!" Shego laughed brightly, despite her mild annoyance, shaking her head fondly as he walked into the bathroom while humming a vaguely familiar tune. As she took the bags of Bueno Nacho, she returned herself to the couple. They were nervous and paranoid, as if expecting someone to jump out of the shadows and attack them. _Newbie thieves or villains?_ Shego wondered, then caught a brief, but much better look at the woman's face. Again that sense of déjà vu, something about the narrow cheeks, her chin and her brow. _Why is this couple bugging me?_ she snapped at herself, wishing she could put her finger on that familiarity.

Hearing Ron's humming again, she handed him one of the bags, taking the other herself. They quickly made their way out to the Sloth, where Kim was just sitting up and rubbing at her left eye. Seeing the crowd behind her fiancé and her girlfriend, she chuckled and knocked on the Ruf-pod to wake the mole rat up. He popped up and glanced out the front and was immediately awake upon the site of Bueno Nacho. As soon as Shego unlocked the door and opened it, Rufus cried, "Cheese!" and dove across the seat, easily scaling one arm and around to sniff tentatively at the bag in her other, "Bradw'st?"

Rufus' face fell slightly, worried he was going to miss out on his favorite meal, when Ron laughed and regarded him with a reassuring smile, "Don't worry, li'l buddy! This place just started up a new Naco: the Bratwurst Naco, and it sounds_ amazing_!"

"Wait..." Shego's face twisted in bemusement, "A... Bratwurst Naco?"

"Badical, isn't it?" Ron asked while the older woman held the seat forward for Kim.

The red-head climbed out and reached up with a back popping stretch, yawning and muttering, "Sounds good, weirdly enough..."

"Well," Shego shrugged, barely resisting the urge to lick her lips at the show Kim had given them, "Let's get a seat and try 'em out!" A minute and four very surprised exclamations later, Shego had finished one of her Nacos almost in time with Ron, "Okay, these_ are _good!"

"I know!" Kim laughed, her tone still that of someone half asleep.

"I, Ronald Stoppable, wholeheartedly approve of this genius modification to my invention!" Ron declared with a heart laugh, before racing Rufus through their second.

"These," Kim said a few minutes later, "_are _ferociously good..." Kim concluded after swallowing the last of three Nacos. She was still sleepy eyed, but not nearly as rough looking.

"Before we take off," Ron chortled, "I'm going to ask the manager who invented this modification and send an email to BN Corporate... I'm sure these'd go over_ huge _in Colorado!"

"Probably..." Shego mused as she watched her friends eating, enjoying her own Naco at a pace somewhere between Kim's sedate enjoyment and Ron's almost literal shoveling of food into his mouth. She had a similar expression to Kim, that of fond eyed, nose wrinkled distaste, when it came to Ron's eating habits. "Eating fast food with Ronnie's an acquired taste, isn't it, Princess?"

"Yeah..." Kim yawned, taking another bite of her Bratwurst Naco, shaking her head in amused dismay, "He's gotten better, though..."

"Thank God..." Shego chuckled, earning a pause in Ron's eating so he could stare between his fiancée and her girlfriend.

"Whaph?" he asked around the Naco in his mouth, his eyes scrunched up in confusion. Shego was suddenly struck with a memory of Harlan when he was Ron's age and a similar situation at the steakhouse his father owned in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

She blinked away the image, but couldn't help but smile and reach over to ruffle Ron's hair with a startlingly open smile. "Nothing, goofball. Just wondering how you can go from proper decorum in a 'real' restaurant," the air quotes she threw up were barely a half heartedly sarcastic statement, "to... Well, this?"

Ron took a mighty swallow to clear his mouth, and chased it with a huge gulp of fritz-kola, a super-high caffeine German cola, before responding with a decorus, "It's a talent, Shay, pure and simple."

"Uh, huh..." Kim replied, leaning forward to rest her chin on crossed hands, "More like instinctual binging..."

"Like wolves?" Shego asked before Ron could respond, to which Kim nodded absently.

"Hey, now!" Ron objected. Shego raised an eyebrow and then lowered both over her eyes in a devilish manner when she responded.

"I guess monkeys would be a better comparison, eh, Princess?" Shego taunted, earning a gasp of shock from Ron, a gasp of someone trying to hold in laughter from Rufus and a full out giggle from Kim.

"Most definitely!" Kim said as she half stood and leaned over the table, giving Ron a kiss on the lips before his working mouth could come up with the words running through his brain. Her tactic worked and his mouth snapped shut to return the kiss, which was short but loving, before Kim sat back down. Ron went back to stuffing his last Naco in his mouth, and the red-head glanced at the last bite of her Naco, grimacing slightly, "I'm stuffed... Anyone else wanna finish mine?"

"Sure." Shego answered, beating a full mouthed Ron to the punch, "I figure with that and what I've eaten, I should be good most of the way to Amsterdam, if not all the way..."

"You sure?" Kim asked with a concerned pout, reaching out to place a hand on Shego's arm.

"Yeah, Princess..." Shego smiled, gazing into Kim's caring, slightly worried eyes. The former thief wanted to lean over and kiss the worry away; after pondering for a few brief moments, she decided to put Kim's earlier assertion that she didn't care who saw them together to the test and leaned over. Kim almost flinched when she realized the older woman's face was so close, "Don't worry about me so much, KP... I'm a big girl, y'know?"

Kim opened her mouth to respond, but Shego leaned the last few centimeters separating them to give her a short kiss. The open mouth was an invitation that the older woman couldn't refuse, and she slipped her tongue out briefly, sighing happily when Kim responded in kind. Although the impromptu French kiss was brief, both were smiling when they parted, and Kim seemed to relax noticeably when Shego clasped her hands together and rested her pale cheek on them. "Wow..." was all the heroine could say, earning a chuckle from Ron and a small, happy coo from Rufus.

"Okay, lovebirds..." Ron jokingly called out, winking at them when he had their attention, "We're done eating, should we hit the road?"

"Yeah..." Kim agreed, stretching and yawning again, "I'unno why I'm so tired, but I'm gonna keep napping if it's okay?"

"Sleep all ya want, Princess..." Shego nodded, reaching over to pat her cheek tenderly, before grabbing most of the garbage. She looked at Ron, "Better hurry up if you want to talk to the manager... I'm going to grab a few snacks and drinks for the road from the c-store..."

They were back on the road within ten minutes, and Shego couldn't help but admire how well Ron was taking her relationship with Kim. _He's really not jealous at all..._ she boggled as she looked over at the blond teen with a look that was filled with unfettered awe. She knew that she felt slight twinges of jealousy when she saw Ron and Kim together, but... She couldn't say, exactly, why she was jealous. It wasn't directed at them, together or separately, nor was it at their closeness, yet at the same time it was. She had an inkling what it was, but the inkling actually left her feeling more frightened; she wasn't in love with Ron, after all, but...

But... Part of her - a surprisingly large part, she admitted with a soul deep amazement - _wanted_ to be in love with him. To share the love she had for Kim with the blond, to receive the same love he had for Kim with her. Like she'd once shared with Harley, but she knew... Didn't worry... Didn't_ wonder_... But absolutely_ knew _that the love she had for Kim, and the love she_ could _have with Ron, was deeper, even more intense than it had been with Harley.

The very realization, however, filled her with that familiar sense of weightlessness she had when thinking about her feelings for Kim... And foreboding, disgust and fear that made her stomach do flip-flops as if she had a serious case of the flu. _Goddammit, why?_ She wanted to scream the question aloud, but dared not. She knew he cared for her, as a friend and perhaps more, but he'd never said how much... And she hadn't asked, too scared of the answer.

With a sigh, she concentrated a little bit for the HUD, specifically the radio display. She scrolled randomly through her 'Road Tunes' folder, pausing on 'M'. She hit enter and selected the band 'Meshuggah', then set it up for random play. She didn't care what songs from the band played, as the complex instrumental arrangements of the band would keep her mind from burrowing down the dark path it was on.

When the song 'New Millennium Cyanide Christ' started, she smiled and eagerly rolled her foot into the gas. The Sloth ripped forward in a surge of acceleration, a low moan emanated from the young man to her right, and a cheer came from the Ruf-pod. "Oh, God, you drive like KP..." Ron gulped, making doubly sure he was strapped in and sitting straight in his seat, taking a few long, slow breaths to steel himself for what was coming.

She chuckled at his antics then turned her full concentration onto the road ahead of her. She tuned out most everything else; Kim's strangely reassuring presence behind her, Rufus' enthused, borderline spastic head banging in the Ruf-pod - which Shego noted went surprisingly well with the band's insane, polyrhythmic playing style - and Ron's panicked calm... Everything but the road, the feedback from the car, the music and her slowly calming thoughts.

When she started accompanying the song, she briefly felt Ron's surprised eyes upon her. Those eyes bounced from her, to the speedometer as it topped two hundred and ninety kilometers per hour, the road, and back to her. She figured he was more surprised to hear her growling along than the speed, and wondered if he'd expected something different; hell, she would in his place! She had been considered by some, especially her high school music teacher, to have a hell of a singing voice. Somehow, she doubted it still remained, and would be a lot rougher than it had been back then if it did. Too much screaming, yelling and, for two and a half years after Harley's death, a three pack a day habit of cigarettes.

She didn't care, she loved the group's music and how it tore her thoughts from the circular, seemingly unresolvable pathways they sometimes tended to follow. So she kept singing, the sound ripped from the back of her mouth and top of her throat in a growling rasp that still had Ron's gaze on her. She felt his curiosity, even his need to ask questions, yet he remained silent. She spared the briefest glances at him out of the corner of her eyes and found that, indeed, he was staring at her, but not with open mouthed shock.

He was staring at her with the smile he normally reserved for Kim on his face, his eyes probing, considering yet more... Much more. She felt butterflies that, at least this time, weren't accompanied by disgust or other negative emotions and hurriedly returned her gaze to the road, lest she get too distracted to respond in an emergency. _What the hell?_ she asked in shock, _No way... We haven't done more than kiss a couple times and share a few accidental touches..._ She kept singing along to the song to keep Ron in the dark about her thoughts, but she also clamped a steel vice of willpower to keep them from running away. _Then again... By that same logic, Princess and I don't make much sense..._ She could almost hear JJ laughing at that thought, and fought the urge to shake her head ruefully, _But, well, I_ do _tend to fall for women hard and quick..._

Ron had just turned his attention to the road when he and Shego saw a rapidly approaching calamity in the making: a two kilometer long line of almost completely stopped vehicles ahead of them as they topped a rise...

**Author's Notes**

Gonna try and keep these short this time around. Not much action in this chapter, but some fun, some potentially important developments... And some realizations that might just lead to heartbreak... But, as the saying goes, there's always hope, non?

Anyway, as always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work. As well, remember everyone, there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and remember: if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Forward**

Hey, everyone, sorry about the delay! Real life has been kicking myself and my flow/feel beta, Neo the Saiyan Angel, in the rear end for the last couple weeks, so getting this out to all of ya has been a bit of a challenge. But here we are, with a chapter that I put a bit extra in for your patience! And speaking of patience, I'll not take up any more, so on to the review replies!

Jimmy1201: yup, the Tweebs may be a pain, but Kim's still their sis, right? And, yeah, Kim, Ron and Shego at least get_ some _R&R! As to the perpetrator of the mental process attack, and whether it's over or they're waiting for another opportunity... Well, only time will tell!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

The Sloth's emergency lights flashed as Ron reached out without prompting and hit the hazzard lights button. The surface of the car's huge brakes flashed orange as the former thief pushed the brake system to its maximum effort, the force of her emergency braking lurching all occupants forward into their restraints.

"What the flying _Christ_?" Kim roared from the back seat as the four point restraint dug into her shoulders, chest and hips. Her eyes widened at her unimpeded view out the front window of the Sloth and the two kilometer long line of vehicles climbing up a hill in front of them.

"Goddamn _stau_!" Shego growled, lessening the pressure on the pedal when they dropped below one hundred and thirty kilometers per hour, giving the brakes and brake fluid a chance to cool and the occupants a chance to catch their breath. She turned down the radio and blew out a long breath she hadn't realized she was holding, "The warning came up on the HUD just as I was hitting the brakes, too..." She glanced in the rearview at Kim's pale, adrenaline tight features and chuckled, "Y'might wanna have your brothers or Wade set up more checks for emergency traffic alerts, Princess..."

"Yeah..." Kim breathed out, chuckling at the same time Shego did. The pale woman glanced back in the mirror as she slowed some more and merged with the line of traffic, setting both of them into a giggle fit to release their tension. Ron and Rufus stared at them as if they were insane, but the always infectious aspect of laughter got them to chuckling after a moment as well. When Kim had enough control to speak, she glanced at Shego and asked, "So, how fast were you going when you saw the jam?"

"Oh..." Shego flushed slightly, "A li'l over three fifty four? K-P-H, I mean..." She sighed and looked out, noticing the flashing of emergency lights ahead and grimaced, "Looks like a wreck..."

"Oh..." Kim smiled at her, reaching forward to rest a hand on her shoulder, "Based on the music and Ron's worried look... D'ya wanna talk about it?"

Shego sighed, glancing back in the rearview as they crept along at a sedate fifty kilometers per hour. "I don't know, Kimmie..." She glanced over at Ron, "It's... I'm not even sure where to start, y'know?"

"Is it about Ron and how you feel? Something else?" Kim prodded and Shego nodded.

"Both, sorta..." Shego pouted at her own thoughts, "Just... Back at the rest stop, I kinda had a flashback to a date at Harley's dad's steakhouse in Jackson Hole... Kinda got me to thinkin' about, well, us?" She half rounded on Ron, startling the blond at the intensity of her gaze, "Can you tell me something, Sport, without equivocating?" Ron looked as if he wanted to act clueless, but the fact that he knew what the word meant was obvious by the nervous gulp. Steeling himself, he nodded, "I... Don't want to push myself, or_ you_, but this has kinda been buggin' me since... Well, since the day on the train, when I kissed you and ever since Kimmie said she loves me, and... How it seemed you didn't have any problems with it, y'know?"

"Shoot, Shay." Ron said with a resigned expression.

"Sorry, Sport... Please understand that I don't like putting you on the spot..." Shego took in a deep breath, her insides fighting a battle between positive, hopeful feelings and cold, leaden dread, "Do you love me? I mean, as more than a new friend, or as your fiancée's girlfriend?"

Ron's entire being seemed to relax with such a force that it calmed even Shego's frayed nerves. "Every bit as much as Kim does." Ron's answer was simple, but carried the same weight of conviction had Kim asked him. "I know you probably wanna know why or how?" Shego nodded and Ron smiled, reaching over to rest his hand on Kim's, whose had was still on the former thief's shoulder, "Because you're awesomely badical, I think you're beautiful in the way KP is. I mean, hell, if you and KP weren't girlfriends and I wasn't with her, I'd probably have fallen anyway... But add all that to the fact that KP loves you?"

"That last..." Shego started, a nervous half grin on her face, but Ron held up a hand to stall her.

"Wait, Shay..." Ron's voice was gentle, but firm, which surprised Shego immensely. She gave a hesitant nod for him to continue, "Yes, I love you, as much as Kim does. We... Talked about it this morning, when we were showering together when you went to get breakfast..." Shego nodded again, earning a chuckle from Ron, "I told her I was getting really strong feelings for you... And we kinda worked it out this way... If the person is someone we both like... If it's someone we both_ like _like and it's someone we_ could _or_ are _falling for already... Then wherever KP's heart goes - and I mean truly, deeply and madly like with you - mine will follow without regret or hesitation..."

"And..." Kim interjected with a firm tone, "It's the same way with me..."

Shego nodded at Kim in understanding, then looked at Ron, "So, if I'd've been a man?" Shego asked, figuring that'd throw him off. She was beyond shocked when he chuckled.

"I'd be finding out what the other white meat was like..." His face screwed up slightly in... Not disgust, but in an obviously unsettled fashion, before he shook whatever he saw in his head away and continued. "Well, I'd be finding out about it emotionally at least, but, well..." Ron shrugged, chuckling with a nervous blush, "Never be normal, y'know?"

The_ stau _ground to a temporary halt as a tow truck blocked one and a half lanes to right a tipped semi-tractor so it could be towed off by a flatbed truck. Shego took the opportunity to twist in her seat towards him a bit more, staring deep into his eyes. Her eyes widened in shock when she saw no deceit, nor hesitation, "You're serious..."

"As that wreck looks..." Ron chirped with his serious face in place, "If not more so... But, all that said..." He brought his hand down to where hers rested just behind the Ruf-pod and clasped his fingers with hers, his face completely serious, "I don't want you to ever_ force _yourself to feel the same way about me, 'kay? Take as long as you need..." He laughed, raising her hand to kiss her knuckles gently, "I... I may not have been in_ love _love with KP back in pre-K, but it's not exactly a lie that waited fourteen years for her... Looking back, since I never thought Kim had cooties I think that was just the first sign of how I felt... And I_ knew _I was in love with her by the time she kissed Walter Nelson back in sixth grade - I mean, okay, I didn't know I was in love, then, but I know things changed with how I felt for Kim - so I_ knew _how I felt for at_ least _eight years! So... I can wait for you, too, Shay, I promise."

Rufus squeaked in annoyance from the Ruf-pod, staring between the three humans, chittering at Ron and Shego, "Yes, Rufus, I know, it's repetitive, but..." He glanced at Shego, "I just want to make sure she understands how completely I believe this."

"Stup'd." Rufus pouted, crossing his arms over his chest, "Gettin' 'nnoyin'."

"Actually, it is kinda stupid, isn't it?" Shego chuckled, hoping Ron didn't feel the slight shiver that ran down her arm when his fingers slid along hers. To hide her brief hesitation, she reached to pat Rufus' head and give him a fond smile, "I'll make it up to you in Amsterdam... I know this great little shop, all high quality bud at reasonable prices, and I'll buy ya a bowl or two, 'kay?"

"Wait..." Kim narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Shego, then Rufus, "You_ both _like pot?"

"Rufus likes pot?" Ron boggled, earning a groan from Rufus and Kim and a startled giggle from Shego.

"Ron, Cannabine Plus is basically pot pellets!" Kim griped at him, then favored Rufus with a slightly annoyed gaze, "And there's times he's eaten a week's supply in one night..."

"Aft'r rough mission!" Rufus defended himself, sticking his tongue out at Kim, who sighed and assented that he was right with a reluctant nod, "I smoke t'enjoy!"

"Oh, like that's any better..." Kim sighed, shaking her head. She twisted her lips wryly and reached out to pet Rufus gently on the head, letting him know she'd let it slide, "At least you have the vet's card..."

"Wow, I never realized..." Ron blinked, then it was obvious that it struck him why, exactly, Rufus was always lethargic when he ate the Cannabine Plus pellets and could keep up with him in eating. He looked down at Rufus and grinned like an idiot, scratching the back of his buddy's head just as Kim removed her hand, "Man, now I feel kinda dumb."

"Is okay!" Rufus answered with a sigh, his eyes closed as he thoroughly enjoyed the scratching.

"Doofus..." Kim and Shego said at the same time, neither bothering with the jinx, and the older woman continued with a wry laugh, "Anyway, Princess, I've had a medicinal card since Go City legalized it back in '97..." Shego glanced at the still stalled traffic before looking at Kim seriously, "Most pain killers, even opiates or analogues like Tramadol, don't work on me... And it helps with my anxiety issues which, again, most drugs don't help with... And those that do tend to hit me with serious side effects, and those side effects last_ longer _with me."

"I notice you're still not denying liking it for the high." Kim said with a mixture of amusement and mild disapproval.

"Didn't think I had to, Princess." Shego smirked, shrugging, "But I didn't start using 'til I had a reason, and usually I only smoke it when I'm in a lot of pain, or feeling a lot of anxiety..." Her smirk turned into a grin, "_Or _when I'm in Amsterdam! But even then, I tend to drink more than I smoke..."

"Does your anxiety really get that bad?" Kim asked and the older woman grimaced.

"Yeah, pretty bad at times." She glanced over at Rufus, "Just ask him, he saw me after I told you about Harley and why I left Team Go..." Rufus nodded solemnly and favored the woman he considered one of his favorite humans with a warm smile.

"So you're saying you'd be a blubbering mess if you didn't?" Ron half chuckled, his chuckle turning into a laugh when Shego favored him with an annoyed glare.

"Frankly, yes." she declared with as much dignity as she could muster, before blushing slightly, straightening in her seat and looking back to the roadway, "Well... More of one..."

"Hey..." Kim said, squeezing the hand she still had on Shego's shoulder, "It's okay, Shay, I just get uncomfortable with it a bit. I mean, if people don't overinduldge it's okay, I guess? It's kinda like I was with alcohol before I got my first buzz last Valentine's Day up in Toronto... Hell, Tara's been using cannabis for anxiety since she came out as bisexual back in her sophomore year. She can't smoke it 'cause, as she says, it's too harsh for her lungs, but she does use it, and apparently only for medicinal purposes... I guess her parents' divorce didn't help much with her anxiety, either, thinking about it..." Shego made a grumpy sound of acknowledgement, but smiled slightly at Kim's attempt to sooth her wounded pride. "Hell, I'd've probably used it instead of naproxen, codeine or Tramadol if I wasn't allergic to it."

"So_ that's _why you bailed on the one concert back in July..." Ron boggled at her.

"Yeah, getting a ferociously intense headache followed by munchies sucks..." Kim giggled.

"Wait..." Shego blinked, "Wait, wait, wait, wait, Ron_ stayed _at the concert?"

"Me too!" Rufus squeaked, then earned a deep blush from Ron as he pointed at his human pantomimed Ron's high state and said in his broken English, "An' 'e w's all 'Woah' an' 'Dude' an' 'KP is awes'm' an' 'Whee!'! Th'n munchies!"

"Your brother's Bueno Nacho had to restock the ground beef twice..." Kim murmured as if in awe of the achievement, drawing a scowl from Ron.

"I was_ hungry_, and so was _Rufus_!" he defended himself and his buddy, earning a laugh from Shego.

"It's called 'munchies' for a reason, Sport!" she reached over and gave him an impromptu hug, then quickly straightened as the vehicles ahead of them began moving once more.

"Yeah, yeah..." Ron tried to grouse, but the hug seemed to raise his spirits too much.

Kim let go of Shego's shoulders, but saw she still had a slightly pensive look on her face. "Anything else wrong, Lover?"

Shego started slightly, as if not expecting that nickname at the moment, "Kinda..." She twisted her mouth into a rueful half smile, "Kim... With how you feel about me, does it... Does it seem like you love Ron any less now that you love me? That it... That what you feel for me, what you_ both _feel... Diminishes what you had before me?"

"Of course not." Kim and Ron said in sharp honesty, Kim continuing, "Jinx, you owe me a back rub!" She chuckled along with Shego and Rufus as Ron moaned in mock annoyance. Glancing back at her new lover, she continued, "Honestly... I feel closer to Ron than I ever have... That he trusts me this much, that he trusts_ you_, the woman I love as much as I love him... That he trusts what he and I have for the two of_ us _to fall in love with_ you_..." Kim smiled slightly, unbuckling her belt long enough to lean forward to kiss Shego's neck just below the ear, which earned her a shiver of pleasure from the older woman, "If anything, having you with me... _Us_, I guess... Even if you're only_ with me _right now... It's brought us so much closer it's not even funny..."

"So..." Shego sighed out as Kim sat back and buckled her belt again, "You... Both love me, that much?" Dual nods of the head left the older woman pondering for a long moment. Impulsively, she reached out with her hand to grasp Ron's, squeezing tightly as if a drowning woman offered that very hand to save her, "I... Thanks, guys..."

"No problem, Beautiful..." Ron murmured, squeezing her hand a couple times in reassurance, "Shay... Would it bother you if I ended up saying how I feel to you?"

"I... Dunno?" Shego half laughed at the shy tone in Ron's voice, glancing at Kim and seeing the same amusement dancing in her eyes, "Why don't you try it, Sport?"

"Sometime..." Ron assured her. Shego realized that she wasn't wiping that hand on her pants as she had a couple times since starting to share Kim with Ron. She also realized he was looking at that hand and smiling, as if he felt some significance to it. Then he leaned his seat back, putting his arms behind his head as if preparing for a brief nap.

"Doofus..." Shego muttered fondly, shaking her head as the traffic began to thin out and she could start to accelerate in earnest.

"Ayup! That's why I'm so lovable!" Kim giggled and Shego scoffed with a roll of the eyes. It seemed to be what the blond had been waiting for, as despite his question a moment before, his next words caught the older woman completely off guard. "Love you, Shay..." She felt his eyes on her, despite his eyes seeming to be closed, felt her own lips quirking in a slight, shy smile. The smile was quickly joined by a soft blush that crawled up her neck to settle just across her cheeks and ears.

She didn't mind, though; for once, the voice in the back of her mind barely let out a grumble and her stomach's only flip flop came from the brief, but nonetheless present, burst of happiness the words gave her...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

When they slowed down to surface street speeds Ron decided to sit up and look around. He'd been awake for a little over a minute, enjoying the change from Shay's earlier choice of music to the current, metal and symphonic blend. The woman lead singer had a lovely voice, not too high pitched or strident, but powerful and emotive.

He was about to speak when he noticed Shay was nodding to the beat and humming along with the singer. He relaxed a bit and changed his mind, watching the emotions flow across Shay's haunting features. _Haunting's a good word to describe her..._ he thought with a smile. He knew that Kim had a somewhat different take on it, but he'd been quite serious when he'd said he considered Shay as beautiful as Kim, in his personal definition of beautiful. Getting to know her, she'd gone from hot but scary - or hot and awkweirdly off during the Miss Go sitch - to hot and cool... To haunting and beautiful. And he'd already been falling for her, hard, when Kim had admitted to being in love with Shay.

He knew people wouldn't understand how he could be as in love with Kim as he was and still love Shay just as deeply. To him, it was easy; to others, he'd have to admit that he loved them equally in the same way most people loved both parents equally, or an aunt and uncle equally. It just made sense to him! Of course, the fact that they were so much alike, but so different at once, and completely smoking, to boot! And the personalities that went with them, while filled with aspects that were laudable, were also aggressive, even abrasive. Even Kim could get that way, on her period or off. Shay was a lot calmer now than she had been, even after the Lorwardians, which had helped with his feelings.

Seeing her like this, however, he had to admit that Shay had a prettier face than Kim. Granted, Kim was very, very attractive, in a prettily cute fashion, yet Shay looked as if she'd be worthy of statue carved to represent a Greek goddess. Her lips were slightly fuller than Kim's, her chin was more her nose, while a touch longer, was more elegantly shaped and helped draw the shape of her eyes and the high cheekbones together.

Their bodies he had to consider equally attractive. Shay did _have_ the larger bust, both women had nearly perfect shape and symmetry, the latter being something Ron remembered being somewhat rare according to health class, Shay's were just a little nicer in his opinion. Kim, however, the nicer ass, but Shay had the better sway to go with her somewhat sexier hips. Both women's legs were, in a word, perfect, and while he prefered the color of Kim's hair, Shay's hairstyle fit her a lot better than her old, flowing hair.

Ron decided to stop there, because he knew he'd keep up that kind of tit-for-tat about their bodies for hours if he didn't. So, a wash, with both having amazing bodies and both were equally attractive physically, in an overall sense. He blinked as he realized that the song had switched over to a new one. There was still a symphonic aspect to the song, but the backbeat was more like an electronic dance track than the symphonic metal of the prior song. "I've been left out alone, like a damn criminal..."

Ron was floored when Shay began singing. Her voice was lower than the singer for the group, but Ron couldn't help but feel a tingling of arousal at the smoky, burry contralto emanating from the pale woman. "I've been prayin' for help... Cause I can't take it all..." The song obviously held some meaning for her, because her face was slightly drawn and tight; not grief stricken, but there hurt and a wistful melancholy were plainly visible.

He missed the next few lines to his shock and the pleasure he felt hearing Shay's singing voice. _Just as badical as I thought it'd be..._ Ron smiled, _Different than KP's, but still nice..._

"...And I'm desperately holding on to it all.." Shay continued, her voice taking on a slightly biting edge as she continued singing, "But I'm lost... I'm so_ damn _lost..." She began to nod her head slightly, not along with the song so much as in agreement with what the lyrics were saying. "Oh, I wish it was over! An' I wish you were h-here..." Ron felt his heart break a little at the small, pain filled hesitation, and was reaching out to pause the music, even as the former thief continued on, "Still I'm hopin' that somehow..."

Shay jumped as the music cut off and the last few words had been sang without the song, and looked over at Ron with wide eyes. The blond wasn't sure what to do, but, deep down, something was screaming at him to be his goofy self. Remembering how well acting on that little voice, that instinct that'd earned him a place in Kim's heart had turned out, he smiled at her and murmured, "Comin' to Amsterdam gettin' ya down, Sheegs?"

Shay blinked, then shook her head out of whatever stupor she'd been feeling and laughed slightly, "Nah, Sport... This song always makes me think of Harley is all..."

"Oh..." Ron nodded in understanding.

"Silly, huh? That music could get me all like..." she waved a hand vaguely at herself, "This?"

"Nah..." Ron shrugged noncommittally, but kept his smile in place, "Just means you loved him, y'know?"

"Yeah..." Shay agreed softly, and she chuckled slightly, "What's funny is that Within Temptation always gets me kinda zoned out. Not bad enough I can't drive, but... Y'know?"

"I do, I do..." Ron nodded, thinking about his own reactions to some of Sublime's music, smiling at the point of similarity between them.

"I guess it's kinda ironic that I'm listening to them, since they're from The Netherlands..." Shay chuckled.

"Really? Coolio!" Ron chuckled, then seemed to realize they were in a residential area, " Oh, hey, um... Are we in Amsterdam?"

"Huh?" the pale woman asked, looking around, "Oh... Umm..." She stopped at a light and glanced around to get her bearings and winced, before leaning forward to beat her forehead lightly against the top of the steering wheel, "Shit!"

"Huh?" Kim's groggy voice floated to the front of the Sloth, "Wha's th'si'ch? 'Re we 'n 'Mst'rdam?"

"Uhh..." Shay's blush deepened, the embarrassed flushing crawling down below her neckline, "Yeah?"

"Cool!" Kim enthused, not seeing Shay's problem as cars began to move in the cross street. However, seeing the tension in her lover's frame, she reached out and gently grasped her shoulder, "Y'okay?" she asked, unbuckling herself and leaning forward to look around. Ron followed her gaze and, past some fancy looking houses was a rather large park. When he looked back, Kim had rested her chin on Shay's shoulder and was murmuring softly, "Wha's wrong, Lov'r..."

"Um..." Shay let out her breath in a huff and grimaced as if in annoyance. Kim leaned back slightly and grabbed a bottle of diet soda, opening it and taking several gulps as the older woman glanced back back at the red-head, "I was kinda spacing and, well..." Shego pointed to the right from their stopped position on the street called _De Lairessestraat_, "I kinda own a place up near the Vondelpark..."

"Wait..." Ron thought for a moment, as if Shay taking them to her place was the furthest thing from his mind, "Um... That's kind of like... Amsterdam's Upperton style area? Upper middle class and stuff?"

"Yeah, what's the problem?" Kim asked, the caffeine from the soda kick starting her brain a bit, but leaving her a little lost at the same time.

"Um, I was kinda driving to my place without asking where you guys planned on staying?" Shay half gurgled as she turned onto the cross street, somewhat agog at his blasé attitude, "I mean, I should've at_ least _aske-..."

Kim's laughter stopped the former thief as effectively as a gag, and Shay turned an incredulous half glare at her, "Oh, God, I'm sorry..." Kim muttered, starting to gain control of herself... Until she caught the annoyed, worried and above all embarrassed expression on Shay's face. She immediately descended into an even louder, more strident giggle fit, joined in by a couple of rueful, half embarrassed chuckles of Ron's own.

"What's so goddamn funny?" Shay growled at the two of them, causing Kim to fall over on her side with her amusement.

"Y-you're... You're embarrass-..." Kim hyperventilated for a brief moment before holding her breath, hoping to compose herself enough to speak. The tactic was working, but was just as quickly raising Shay's ire further, and the red-head forced her words out in a rush that sounded like one word, "I can't believe you're embarrassed about taking your_ girlfriend_ and her_ fiancé_ to your house, Shay!"

"Is Kimmie always like this when she wakes up?" the older woman ground out in a drawn out manner, turning her half glare on Ron before looking back at Kim, "It's not funny!"

"Um..." Ron murmured, scratching the back of his neck in consternation as Kim's laughter, almost under control, increased once again, "I, um... Didn't know you had a place here, Shay, but it might be a good thing, y'know?"

"How so, Stoppable?" Shay growled.

Ron held up his hands as if to ward off an attacking lioness, a blush of his own spreading from his nose to his cheeks as he stammered out, "Um, I kinda-sorta might've been a little predisposed and might've kinda forgot to call and make preservations at a hotel or something this morning? Y'know..." Shay's growl and the irritated ticking of her right eye made Ron realize he should stop while he was ahead. He did, but, unfortunately, Kim couldn't see why he stopped and continued, turning her mirth on Ron instead.

"Preoccupied." Kim tittered, blinking at Ron's questioning grunt and misunderstanding Shego's second growl as agreement with her correcting Ron, "Preoccupied, Ronnie, and _res_ervations, not _pres_ervations!"

"That. Is. Not. My. Point." Shay griped as she pulled into an empty parking spot on the side of the roadway, all but slamming the gearshift into park. She half spun in her seat to spear both of them with a glare, ignoring Rufus who had woken up and was staring at all of them like they'd grown three heads, "My point is that I got all the way to Amsterdam and most of the way to my house without even asking if you had a place reserved or-ummph!"

Kim silenced her with a kiss, her eyes closed but her mouth still curled in amusement. Shay started to flinch back, but a firm hand twining itself in her hair and a gentle caress of fingertips on her cheek stopped her. After a few seconds of angry staring and deep breathing through her nose, a soft sigh of fading annoyance escaped and the older woman's eyes slipping closed in mute acceptance of Kim's affectionate gesture. After a small eternity that barely measured across the span of a few seconds, Kim pulled back with a soft giggle, giving one last peck to her lover's lips. They both pulled back slightly and stared at each other before the red-head finally murmured, "It's sweet you're so worried we'd think you were being presumptuous, but you're being ferociously silly getting all defensive about it!" She leaned forward again to give the former thief a quick peck on the nose, "It's so_ cute_!"

"Aww..." Rufus cooed, giving a double thumbs up to the two women.

"Yeah, well..." Shay tried to huff, affecting a pout and facing forward for a moment. She let out another huff, this one honestly annoyed sounding, before murmuring, "Sorry, I'm just..." She waved a hand in a vague, circular fashion as she sought the words to describe her worries, "I_ am_ being silly, I guess, just like you said."

"No big, Love..." Kim said coyly, drawing Shay's attention back at her just as Kim leaned up and put her arms around the seat to give her a friendly, if slightly awkward hug. The older woman reached up to where Kim's hands rested and squeezed them, before putting a hand on the wheel and another on the gear shift.

"Well..." Shay sighed, "Shall we go to my place then?"

"Yup!" Ron chuckled at Kim's enthusiastic reply and nodded in turn. Shay smiled and put the car in drive, checked traffic and pulled out, heading towards her house...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Okay, so're we all gonna be in on this?" Joss asked as she rode in a borrowed, P.L.L., L.L.C.'s stealthed hovercraft towards their Denver, Colorado destination, "Or is it jus' gonna be me'n' Meegs here slippin' in?"

"We'll be offering backup..." Tim said from the screen of a small, VTOL Wadebot about the size of a coffee maker, the Mini-Wadebot v. 3.2, and Jim continued from a nearly identical one, "And assisting Wade... In data acquisition."

"Which is why we're both carrying one of these," Mego nodded at the twins, holding up a Mk. V Kimmunicator, "I have a couple questions, though. First, what we're going to do if one of us gets spotted? _I_ know that _I_ can shrink out of sight. And, no offense, Joss, but how good are you at being sneaky?"

Joss smirked and stood from the co-pilot's chair, making nary a sound despite wearing a pair of cargo pants and a burgundy colored version of Kim's second mission shirt. "I learned t'be_ real _quiet while huntin', an' I'm good at hidin' in plain sight, even better when I have some cover."

"She_ is _good at hiding..." Felix grimaced from behind the pilot's seat, "There was an honest to God ninja that was at our school once, and she makes less noise just moving around than he did!"

"Well, then..." Mego smiled, glancing about the other eight passengers in the hovercraft, "I guess we're set. The plan's solid... My second question is this: what if we don't find any incriminating evidence?"

"Then..." James sighed, grimacing slightly, "We bring down their systems so hard they can't do anything until it's too late."

"I'm still worried about this..." Drew muttered, but his eyes were clouded with anger, "But just make sure we get something... I don't want to risk_ any _of us going to jail for B and E!"

"We will." Joss promised, then glanced at the empty seat next to her, "So, um... Where's Aunt Anne, Uncle James?"

"She's conferring with a lawyer." James chuckled in a surprisingly evil fashion, "In hopes of having an injunction placed against Miss Tripe." He caught Drew giving him an odd look, and held up his hands, "Now, Drew, even you admitted I've always had the better evil chuckle."

"Yes..." Drew admitted with a bit of a moue, before he smiled, "But I had the evil laugh_ down_..."

"And then you..." Jim started with a giggle, "Turned into a good guy!"

"Yes..." Drew said in a drawn out manner, rubbing his chin thoughtfully, "And the perks are_ so _much better..."

"Just how did you..." Jim started, but a stern look from his father shut him down in an instant.

"You're too young for that story, boys." James' tone and look should have brooked no argument, but the twins were known for their persistance.

"Awww, c'mon, Dad!" Jim objected, Tim continuing with a petulant, "We're almost as old as Wade!"

"And the details are Drew's to reveal..." James nodded, then smirked, "When you're_ older_. Now drop it, boys."

"Thank you, James." Drew said with quiet decorum, before chuckling along with James as if at some private joke, "Ah, old Mr. Burns... I still don't understand how he was able to put up with all of us - especially after the sentient lasagna - and keep on being such a player..."

"The old man had skill..." James nodded sagely, then glanced down to his right, "We're almost here. You two ready?"

"Yup." Joss and Mego nodded, "Where should we start checkin' things out, Meegs?"

"I'd say her office..." Mego murmured, "Then get a Mark V on one of the media servers, in case they have a copy of the show to broadcast already... Not to mention the pictures."

"Let's hope that's the only place they'll have them." Joss muttered.

"Good news, though," Wade called from behind Jim as he walked up to the workstation the twins were working from, "I have an e-buddy that worked on their above board systems. He says that the media servers and likely Tripe's are all on the office intranet, separated from the external access systems. Get on one of those, and we should have free run from here. All we need is proof of either collusion or being an 'unwitting pawn' of one of Kim's known enemies and we'll be able to stop the broadcast."

"Awright." Joss nodded as they settled into a hover three feet from the five story office building's roof. She glanced about downtown Denver and shook her head, muttering, "Clever to put this in here, considering who pays her paychecks..."

"Yeah," Mego agreed with a snort of annoyance, "Even I turned her down for an interview a few years back... And I never liked Vulpa Networks..."

"That," Joss chuckled she readied herself to open up the hatch, "Is just proof you're not as bad as everyone thought you used to be, Meegs..."

"I know." Mego chuckled, then went silent as he grabbed Joss' shoulder, making sure to shrink just himself down to roughly Rufus' size, before Joss dropped them quietly onto the roof.

The stealthed MiniWadebots flew out behind them, and Felix closed the hatch with a whispered, "Careful, Joss, love you."

Joss held a thumbs up back towards him, before slinking across the gravel roof. Mego, who had met a few ninja in his life as well, was shocked at just how quiet the nearly sixteen year old Montanan moved. The girl quickly made it to the roof's access to the elevator. She quickly picked the lock with one of Wade's gadgets and made her way inside and down a few stairs to the elevator shaft's ladder. "Fourth floor's her office." Joss whispered and Mego nodded.

With a breath, the girl carefully mounted the ladder and went down to the fourth floor, checking the size of the vent shafts by opening the cover. They were just big enough for them to squeeze in, although the fit would be tight across Joss' chest. Grumbling slightly, she propped it open and squeezed inside, crawling with her elbows as quietly as she could while leaving Mego to take up the rear and drop the cover back in place. Not that he minded; he was working with someone that obviously had a clue!

A few minutes later found them in an odd, disturbing conundrum. The vent had split, and they were over what should have been an empty office... And the vent shaft had suddenly increased in size enough that Joss could walk crouched if she wanted to. "This was supposed to be an empty room, not a room at the conjunction of ten huge air vents!" Joss muttered in worry.

"Want me to check her office, maybe you can find something in these vents to give Wade or the twins access somewhere." She glanced at him and reluctantly nodded, carefully lifting up to the vent that would take him to Tripe's office while she glanced between the ten vents. She turned on her own wrist Kimmunicator and shined the light around, immediately noticing several arrows pointing various directions as well as solid vent access points.

Pursing her lips, she walked to one of the smaller ones and whispered into her headset, "Meegs, I'm taking the small vent that will be immediately to your left when you come back."

"Got it..." Mego answered, and Joss went to work. When they got over to the vent, she noticed it was a toolless design. She opened all but one of the levers, then tied the extra length of grapnel line she always carried off to it; just in case the airflow was monitored for changes over time that would indicate an open hatch. She clambered in, bracing herself in the shaft before closing it, leaving the line inside in such a way that a tug one way would close it, the other would open it. She just hoped Mego would figure it out.

Ten minutes later found her almost one hundred and fifty feet down, or ten stories below street level. She was finally at the point the vent shaft went horizontal, and was glad she could still crawl on her hands and knees, as opposed to crawling on her belly. She was, however, growing more and more worried, and was just about to risk calling Wade when she felt a minute tapping at her foot. Glancing back, she saw the two foot tall Mego and sighed in relief. He made his way to her shoulder, and whispered, "Back that way about twenty feet was a vent cover over a hallway... There's men dressed up like WWEE goons walking the hallway..."

"Great..." Joss sighed, then shrugged, "Let's look around, keep in touch, two minute intervals."

"Right." Mego agreed, then tapped his Mark V, "Remember to record anything important..."

"Gotcha." Joss gave him a thumbs up, and went about her business. About five minutes later she was crawling towards a vent cover letting through a lot of light. When she got to it, she realized she was at the back of a positively huge control center, with a fifteen foot diagonal screen at the front. She barely choked back a shocked curse as she saw who was standing in the command area, yelling at the screen: Deegan Tripe, wearing a hoodless WWEE uniform!

She turned on the Mark V's audio and video recording equipment, tapping into it with her earpiece and was shocked as she heard the woman speaking, "...ell Gemini that Agent Delta needs to speak to him, now, you insignificant little peon!"

"Y-yes, ma'am!" the poor Lambda on the screen was pale white as he put her on hold. Ten seconds later, Gemini was on screen, looking quite pleased with himself.

"Report, Agent Delta!" he muttered, and Joss again had to bite back an exclamation as Mego's voice cut through the audio she was still recording.

"Joss, evac, now!" he hissed.

"No can do, got jus' what we need t'help m'cousin!" she whispered in a barely audible fashion, hoping he heard her.

"Well, the twins got some good stuff from the media computers, and Wade found some info, but I think one of us tripped something, 'cause they're going to 'purge the vents' in five minutes." Wade informed her, "Whatever you have better be good, but you only have about a minute to get more before_ I'll _drag your ass out!"

"Shut up and let me check!" she half growled, then listened in.

"Very well done, Agent Delta!" Gemini beamed at the woman, "And even if you don't manage to succeed fully, you will plant the seeds of doubt in people's minds."

"That is my hope, sir!" Tripe answered, standing straight and saluting Gemini.

"As soon as you are finished, I think it'll be time to arrange a little... Accident... For Deegan Tripe!" Gemini continued, "Don't you agree, Agent Delta?"

"Yes, sir." Tripe nodded, glancing to her left, "Delta Three has everything set up... And if we can pull this off and spin it right, it'll make Possible look even worse!"

"Excellent!" Gemini crowed, "Make it so, and contact me as soon as the show is finished... Goodbye, Agent Delta."

"Sir!" Tripe saluted again and Gemini nodded, signing off.

Joss, having heard enough, began to make her way back to the junction leading up. She would have to use the grapnel and hope no one heard it. Glancing at her wrist, she knew it would be close, and just hoped Mego would be waiting for her. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw him a bit down the shaft, his eleven inch frame making the sound of a somewhat large rodent as he sprinted to her. "Hang on..." she whispered when he scrambled up on her shoulder.

She shook her head as he seemed ready to stay on her shoulder, hissing, "Grow a bit more, make sure you can stay put." When he hit two feet, she nodded, then hoped her aim was right. She launched the grapnel, and when she heard a minute ting, she tugged... Satisfied it would hold their weight, she started it retracting on setting three, which would start out somewhat slow, but end up with them veritably rocketing through the shaft.

She almost giggled when she saw that the grapnel's hook had clung around one of the heavy duty bolts holding the door in place. She had just tugged on the line connected to the outside lever when she felt a slight pressure buildup in the line. She immediately pushed the door open and let Mego jump out, before following him quite unceremoniously. Mego had immediately grown to full size and closed the hatch, and Joss jumped up to throw the levers on the right side while he did the left.

An instant later, there was an odd, almost ringing roar that was flanged ever so slightly. Both heroes took a deep breath and let it out slowly, before glancing around themselves. "Should we just go out in the hallway, or be sneaky again?" Mego asked.

"I'd like to," Joss replied, "but, well, no need to point suspicion at Team Possible just yet!" Mego nodded, and they waited a few moments for Jim and Tim's remote controlled Wadebot v. 3.2's to maneuver through the real building's ducts back to them, before making their way back up to the vent they'd made their ingress through, hoping that their so far mostly unnoticed status would remain just that...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Kim ran her right hand's fingers along Ron's bare chest in random, gentle circles. He was lying on his back, and she was draped half over his right side, half on the bed with her left arm curled mostly under her. Her left leg was wrapped under and around his right in an awkwardly comfortable manner and she was using his arm as a pillow, even as his was out to his side and had maneuvered under Shego's pillow in his sleep. She moved her hand down to the bottom of his floating ribs and gently tickled him, giggling lightly when he barely moved, _Serves you right for staying up for almost thirty seven hours!_ the red-head thought at him, biting her lip at the cute half pout, half smile on his face even in his sleep.

_My silly, lovely man... _she thought to him,_ How you and Shay convinced me to go with gentle tonight, I'll never know, but thank you for doing_ just_ that... _She leaned up slightly and planted a soft kiss to his chest before laying her head back down. Their love making that night had been slow and tender, a response to a mild argument she'd had with Shay over some teasing the older woman had given her. While Ron had cooked a quick dinner from the older woman's dry and canned goods, Kim had asked if the former thief was alright with her adjusting the sound system in the house's den, just a bit. Shay had teased her, wondering if she was always this possessive. Kim hadn't reacted too well to it, much to her embarrassment, but at least it had been resolved. Well, mostly... The security consultant was_ still _calling her an 'audio nerd', much to her frustration!

The love making had helped, and had put her in a better place, mentally. She knew, for example, that the tenderness had been something she'd needed with him, and would probably not just want, but need, for some time. This despite her normal desire for a more intense, rougher experience with him._ Combative sex? _she wondered to herself, smiling faintly at the idea. It fit, and her smile expanded slightly,_ Yeah, that fits me... _At the same time, the intensity they had shared a couple hours earlier had been... More than normal... Almost painfully taut, like a guy-wire about to snap, yet deliciously relaxing at once.

She could get used to it, with Ron, but it would take time... And she'd need the old way of doing things and not just occasionally. She liked how it felt, as odd as it still seemed to her, and liked the soreness - so much like the day after a heavy workout - left in her legs and hips when she managed to work him up. But, not tonight... The near bruising she normally preferred on her breasts wasn't there, and she felt a brief flash of disappointment as she brought her left hand up to caress her right breast. But..._ Okay, I am liking this, kinda anyway..._ she thought as she traced the curves of her right breast with her fingernails, barely touching the flesh.

The hand moving from her hip almost made her jump in startlement. She quivered and let out a soft, moaning purr as the fingertips of that hand ran up the side of her waist with a feather light touch. "Getting to_ like _it soft, Princess?" Shay's husky whisper drew a deeper shiver, bordering on a shudder, as Shay's left hand slipped from her side to her breast, gently nudging under the red-head's hand like a cat wanting head scratches.

"I think I'll like it like that with Ron sometimes..." Kim closed her eyes and bit her lower lip as Shay's knowledgeable fingers began to gently knead at her breast. The calloused hands of her lover somehow managed to avoiding her hardening nipple, drawing a quiet, anticipatory groan from the red-head before she continued, "But, with you?" She twisted her head around, almost surprised to find Shego's lips seeking hers. The kiss was brief, unhurried and had an undercurrent of pleasant, understated passion, "With you, I think I'll always love it soft... You're_ my _soft lover..." Kim bit her lip again as the words struck her, a sudden thought sliding across her mind like oil in a hot pan,_ That... Really sounded possessive, didn't it?_

"Good..." Shay whispered in her ear, briefly breaking her out of her thoughts, but causing her to stiffen slightly. The older woman sensed the change and shifted her position to a slightly more convenient one. Her right leg ended up sliding from between Kim's and curling around the heroine's knee, and she pushed herself up on her elbow so she could more easily look at her younger lover. Kim smiled up at her, but knew that Shay could see the troubled look in her eye as soon as the older woman's gaze shifted to one of mild concern, "Y'okay, Pumpkin?"

"I..." Kim whispered, looking away from her and back to Ron's chest, where she had once again placed her right hand. She hung her head slightly as she stared, suddenly feeling scared; she knew from a little bit of studying she'd done after finding out about her and her father's altered minds had told her most suggestion has to have some basis to work. Looking back on the last few months, especially since July, she'd realized she'd become very,_ very _greedy... Not wanting to share Ron with their friends unless she was there, not wanting to share her friends with their friends... Not wanting her mother around her own husband...

"Yes, Love?" Shay prodded, making Kim stiffen once again. Kim swallowed, trying to work out how to explain her worries without sounding petulant.

"Am I..." Kim started, stopping to swallow as Shay gently rolled her nipple between her thumb and forefinger, "Am I greedy? Selfish?"

"Yes." Shay answered simply, an odd mix of humor and seriousness in her tone that made Kim stiffen slightly. The older woman briefly changed the rolling motion of her fingers into a pinch; not as hard as she liked Ron doing it, but the hardest she'd done to Kim up to then, startling her silent long enough for Shay to add, "And before you fly off the handle, let me explain what I mean." Kim nodded for her to continue, and the fingers relaxed, gliding over to the other breast, "Okay... Kimmie, first off, you're human, so greed, or selfishness if you don't want to be so crass? It's par for the course. And, yes, I understand what you're asking... Going off of what I could see of you before the Lorwardians and after we met in Munich - _and_ what Ron told me about you during the summer - yeah, you have been. Jealous, selfish with your time, your friends, etcetera..."

"Yeah..." Kim hissed as Shay's fingertips began to glide down her stomach, the pressure even lighter than it had been on her side, "But... But is that me, or... O-or just..." Kim shuddered as the older woman kissed the side of her neck, just behind the jugular where her scalp ended and her fingers brushed teasingly along her hips centimeters above her trimmed mons, "Am I..._ Was _I... Becoming s-someone else? W-sas it j-just... The hypn-notic suggestion?"

"I don't know, Kimmie, only_ you _can answer that..." Shay gently scooted back slightly, carefully rolling the red-head over onto her back. Kim could feel the cool air on her core, could_ feel _the almost desperate excitement as the older woman slid her fingers down the very outer edges of her lips.

"What I_ do _ know, Princess..." she planted a soft kiss on Kim's slightly open lips, and the red-head's breathing became half ragged and quick...

"Is that you seem to be the Kim Possible I've tangled with..." She carefully dipped just the tip of her finger inside of Kim, drawing a shuddering gasp from the younger woman...

"That I've battled_ against_... That I've fought_ beside_..." she moved a finger up, sliding lazily left and right from until she encountered Kim's engorged clit as it peeked almost coyly from its hood...

"That I've respected for_ years_..." Shay's finger, barely touching the flesh, began to stroke with infinite patience and gentleness at a spot that Kim felt would be about one o'clock if the older woman were facing her core...

"That I've_ loved _for a little over a week..." Kim knew what Shay was doing to her... Had experienced it after her second time making love to Ron the first night she was fully with Shay... And knew that the older woman would work her up to, and could hold her at the edge of, orgasm quickly with it.

"And, Princess..." Shay added, leaning down to gently worry at her neck, "I don't... I can't_ love _someone that's truly selfish, like you're worried about... Like you might have been at the start of this vacation of yours..."

"P-please, Shay..." Kim begged, gazing into the older woman's beautiful eyes and unconsciously bucking her hips to increase the tortuous pressure. Shay's had other ideas, her incredibly strong arm holding her down easily, even as the older woman lightly ground her palm into Kim's mons, "Please d-don't draw th-this-nnngh... O-out..."

"Shhh..." Shay whispered, kissing her again, keeping eye contact with Kim and pouring all of her emotion into the gaze, "Let me do this for you, Kimberly... Let me take your mind off of your worries, 'kay? Or maybe, if you_ have _to worry, doing this for you will help make it less bothersome..." Kim opened her mouth to counter, but the older woman's was there, gently sealing the words away.

Kim moaned in mingled desire and protest, but as Shay's tongue meeting hers drew her thoughts from her worries and into the present. Everything else flowed away as she stared up into the lovely, incredibly intense passion she saw within her lover's eyes, surrendered her body to the tender ministrations. Soon, she felt an exquisite, almost painful pressure building in her belly, a pressure that seemed like liquid fire that slowly melted its way to her sex, as if seeking to join the finger stroking ever so softly against her. Her body quivered as if a high tension spring, a soft mewl seeming to seep from her very being as the fire settled under Shay's finger, seeking, begging for release as much as that simple sound.

"All for you, Kimmie..." Shay murmured, breaking the kiss, her face serious as she continued to stare into Kim's eyes, "All for my Princess... My lover..." She continued to stroke, and Kim knew she was waiting... Waiting for the sign they both know meant the red-head was right on the edge. Finally, Kim's moaning became a keening whine, and while Shay kept the pressure the same, she flared a bare fraction of her power. It wouldn't burn, but that added, almost electric sensation and slight warmth spiraled the sensations up ten fold. Then, with deliberate, husky intonation, she whispered, "I love you, Kimmie, now, always and forever."

That was it; Kim didn't know how, or why, but it had been as if her body were waiting for that simple, but heartfelt declaration. She felt her body tense, forcing her eyes closed at the sheer power of sensation flowing up and down her body; odd, random flashes of light exploded behind her eyes as the pressure sought release. Her back, despite the older woman's strength, bowed, lifting her back and rear from the bed several inches, yet still, Shay kept the soft pressure and stroking up. Her voice failed her, no sound coming from her throat aside from an explosive exhalation of her pleasure. The pressure, that torrent of liquid fire flowed from her brain, lanced through her heart and belly, to Shay's finger, and seemed to continue out of her.

The feeling rolled on and on through her tense body for so long, until, eventually, her body slowly relaxed onto the bed. "Wow..." Shay murmured, "That was intense, Kitten..."

"Wha-..." Kim muttered numbly, only then realizing that her lover was using more pressure on her clit, but lessening the pressure, bringing her down from the intense orgasm with slow, knowledgeable care. "Yeah... God..." She could feel how much more wet she was, and flushed slightly, "I'm soaked..."

"Indeed..." Shay agreed, her ring and index fingers teasingly sliding down to spread her lips before dipping one carefully into her, "All for you, like I said, Kitten..."

"K-kitten?" Kim croaked, staring in confusion at Shay's amused, loving countenance.

"You sound like a kitten when you come, Kimmie..." Shay whispered, her breath tickling the red-head's ear.

"Oh..." Kim nodded, closing her eyes and enjoying the feeling of her beautiful lover's finge-..._ Fingers... _she realized in shock, having not felt the second finger at first,_ God, I wish he was awake... _She mused as she glanced at her fiancée,_ Ron would probably love how I feel right now, especially since he could enter me without any problems! He loves me, and making love to me, but he's so worried about hurting me._ She sighed, moaning quietly as Shay's finger brushed the spot Ron's cock did in certain positions, loving the sensation the older woman's still plasma wreathed fingers gave her._ And now I might finally be over feeling so worthless that he has to worry about hurting me when I can tell he just wants to go all out..._

_They both love me so much..._ she smiled and moaned slightly at the sensation of Shego inside her, _But they should keep some for themselves, I don't deserve_ that _much of their love... It shouldn't be all about m-..._ Her mind stumbled like a train derailing as that last thought bounced around her head, bringing all of her thoughts to catastrophic halt. That was it! It was so simple to understand why she'd felt the way she had... Her body stiffened as her mind started to work again, and she didn't notice that Shay had withdrawn her fingers from Kim's sex. Kim paid no heed, her realizations striking into her heart like a thousand hot needles. She knew, after all, that a month, hell, two weeks before, she would have thought about how_ she _would feel to have Ron inside her, not how_ he _would feel. Now, she could think of his feelings, his desires and pleasure, and before she could... Just like it had been when he asked her to marry her, or their first month and a half in Go City!

And just like that, a cascade of realizations struck her, starting with the fact that she'd been beyond merely selfish, and in the worst possible way she could imagine: she'd been, unconsciously, trying to push people away. It'd started with her father, their argument. She'd loathed herself for what had happened, the words she'd said, for believing that her father thought that way... Especially after he'd_ told _her he was fine with her and Ron's relationship! She should have_ known _something was wrong, but... She hadn't, she'd accepted it at face value, because by that time, she'd started to feel completely and utterly useless. The careless words of a small minded, jealous man had slipped in with whatever had been done to her and coiled like a python around her most treasured sense of self.

She'd lambasted her mother for marrying an uncaring jerk like her father. She'd lambasted Ron for having the temerity to suggest something seemed off with her father. The change had been so sudden, but in Kim's mind, it had been building for months... Yet, looking back, she couldn't think of one incident since the middle of her_ junior _year in high school in which her father had said one negative thing about Ron! But she knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she was damaged goods... That she wasn't worthy of her loving family, her friends... Ron...

And because of that, and the argument with her father, she'd become suspicious of her friends. It had started with Monique when she'd called the black girl to talk about what had happened, about what she was feeling. But... Monique had begged off, saying she had a paying freelance job to get to and a date with a hottie. Kim had accepted it, on the surface. In reality, she'd felt spurned by her friend and had begun to distrust her. She waited for Monique to call, knowing the girl was busy with school, but not caring. Monique had only called five times in the next three weeks._ No! _Kim snapped at herself,_ She'd called more, but I'd been busy with school or missions, and only_ talked _to her five times in the next three weeks!_

The last time she'd talked to Monique had been after the new mission wear had been designed... Her eyes snapped open in shock; she hadn't even thought of calling Monique, her best friend, when she'd started a relationship with Shay! She... She hadn't even thought of Monique since the last call..._ Oh, God, I've become such a cunt..._ she thought, realizing that she'd slowly been cutting ties with even Tara and Alex. She'd felt, at the time, like she was being forced to see them each and every day. And although she'd hung out with them, hidden her fear that they didn't want to be around her, she had felt she didn't deserve their friendship!

Those thoughts had coiled around her, seeping into her heart, her very soul like a slow, but inevitable poison... And had remained there, almost sleeping but ever watchful, ready to pounce whenever the other girls had something else to do... When they wanted alone time with each other... Her other friends from home, mostly passing acquaintances, and classmates she'd helped with school work. At the time, she thought they'd all seen through her, to how weak she was, when, in actuality, she wasn't weak... She never was, but she_ had _been manipulated, and it made her sick to her stomach!

"I'm sorry..." Kim whispered, not realizing she'd spoken aloud, "I'm so,_ so _sorry for... For what I've done t-to... To everyone..."

"Kimmie..." Shay whispered as Kim started to cry, pulling the smaller woman to herself, enfolding her protectively in her arms, entwining her legs, trying to get as much contact with the red-head as she could. She kissed Kim's temple when the girl began to sob quietly, stroking her hair, her back, doing everything she could to let her younger lover know she was there, "I'm here, Kitten... What's wrong, tell me... What are you sorry for, hmm?"

"I..." Kim's breath hitched, "I-I was p-pushing... Pushing_ everyone _away... I didn't want them to_ see_..."

"See what, Kim?" Shay prodded as a silence descended, "What didn't you want them to see?"

"H-how_ weak _I was..." Kim half hissed, half bawled, "How much of a_ failure _I was starting to become..." She shook her head when Shay made a sound of admonishment, "I know, I'm not, but... A-at the time... I thought e-everyone was trying t-oo distance themselves, so I k-kept trying to keep th-them closer... I d-din't want them_ leaving _m-me behind!" her breath hitched but she bit the sob back, continuing, "B-but, the more I thought th-they were distancing themselves f-_from _me... I-it was the other way around..." Kim let a few sobs out, but continued doggedly, wanting it all off her chest, "A-and... I blamed them... Even Ron... But I cou-couldn't let them go... But, if they di-didn't stay close to m-me... I tried t-to cut ties mo-more... Like... Like I started to at first w-with you... I didn't want to b-believe you'd gone evil again, b-but... But it just seemed s-so _easy_! Feeling th-that way, it was a-_all_ so easy, to j-just let my_ worst _side out at everyone!"

"Shhh..." Shay murmured softly, rocking the girl as much as she could in their awkward position, "You're not weak..._ Especially _not now, not if you can tell me this..." Kim nodded in acknowledgement, all she could manage to do, and the older woman kissed the crown of her head a few times, a soft, teary smile on her face, "Just let it out, Kimmie... I'm here, I won't leave... I_ promise _you, I'll_ never _leave..."

Kim wasn't sure how long they stayed like that, Shego comforting her with soft words and gentle humming, but it was enough. Slowly, the tears ebbed and Kim looked up into Shay's eyes. She saw that the older woman had cried with her and her face crumpled slightly, "Sorry..."

"For what, Princess?" Shay asked, bringing her right hand up to smooth some of Kim's hair from her eyes.

"For making you cry..." Kim bit her lip for a moment, before moving in and planting a brief, soft kiss to Shay's lips.

"You didn't, KP..." Shay assured her with a smile, cupping the red-head's face, "I... Used to feel that way, just before I left Team Go... I..."

"You weren't in a good place..." Kim finished for her, earning a nod from the older woman. She brought her hand up to cup the older woman's hand to her face and kiss her palm, and gave a gentle verbal prod when Shay frowned slightly, What's wrong?"

"Nothin'..." Shay grimaced and shook her head, "Well, somethi'n... Just... When I pleasured you, I didn't expect, well... For you to figure out something so big, y'know?"

"Yeah..." Kim tittered, "Thanks, by the way... You're_ so _good at that..."

"I aim to please, Princess..." Shay chuckled, leaning down to kiss Kim's nose.

Kim opened her mouth to say more, when a sudden, jerky movement from behind her startled her eyes wide. "D'wn!" Ron called out in a sleep slurred manner, his voice strident even through the haze of sleep clinging to him, "Tw' m're, ri't, twenny met'rs..."

Kim started to crane her neck in confusion, but when Ron's body tensed, she found herself all but flying through the air as Shay, her arms still wrapped around the red-head's chest, dragged her bodily from the bed. It was a good thing, too; an instant after Kim's face moved from the bed, the blond's elbow came arcing around to slam viciously into the bed in the same spot. "Ron!" Kim screamed, and incongruously, that seemed to snap him out of whatever nightmare he was in, at least partially.

The bed frame creaked from the force of the blow, then Ron opened his eyes and flashed his legs into a kip up, dropping into a low monkey stance. He was only starting to sweat, but his eyes had a brilliant blue glow about them. He was breathing heavily and staring at Kim and Shay, their nude bodies lit by his eyes. "KP?" he asked, swallowing, "Shay? Wher-..."

"We're at my place in Amsterdam, Ronnie..." Shay murmured quietly, her tone full of quiet reassurance, "It was just a dream, Sport... Calm down, breathe..." Ron blinked, his Mystical Monkey Power fading as his surroundings struck him, and the pale woman nodded encouragingly, "It's alright, we're real, we're not the enemy... You're in my room, safe, not fighting, I promise..."

"Shay?" Ron begged suddenly, his eyes filling with tears of relief as he took a step forward, awkwardly stepping off of the bed. Both ladies were there immediately, holding him up as he all but collapsed into them, "Oh, God... The train... I... I'm sorry, KP, Shay, I'm sorry..."

"Shhh..." Kim and Shay murmured to him, Kim's worried eyes catching Shay's across his back. She gave a minute shake of her head, then mouthed, "Trust me..." She pulled back and looked into Ron's eyes, cupping his face and making sure he didn't look away, "We're not there, Ron, I promise... We're safe, you're safe, those people you were protecting on the train all came out alive... You did what you had to, to protect them..."

"But..." Ron started, but Shay gently interrupted him.

"No, Ron..." she raised her voice just a tad, "You had to do what you had to do... No one faults you for it!"

"But..." Ron said again, pushing on when Shay opened her mouth to stop him, "I didn't wanna kill again... I promised_ KP _I wouldn't aga-..."

"Shhh, Ron..." Kim soothed gently, "I never asked for that promise... And I've never been in that situation..." She bit her lip when she pulled back slightly to look at him, "I'm... I hope, if I ever am, I handle it as well as you did..."

"I..." Ron's knees almost gave out on him, and the two of them sat him on the edge of the bed. He sniffled gently as he stared off into space, shuddering slightly as he shook his head.

"You what, Ron?" Shay asked, and Kim hoped the former thief using his name would snap him out of the spiral like state he was in, "What happened? We've been told you had to, but what happened to bring it to that point?"

"There..." Ron started, only to swallow and glance back and forth between the two women he loved, "They... Came in after the first wave... The soldiers... The GJ guys, too?" both women nodded at him and he continued with a heart wrenching whisper, "They took out the other guys at range, and I knocked a couple out that almost snuck in on us..." He shuddered again, "Then... When we thought it was all done, TJ took a pistol round to his armor." Ron's voice was a distant monotone, but tears continued to fall down his cheeks, "They were screaming... One in French, the other in really thickly German accented English, saying that they were there to destroy us because we represented those holding Humanity down..."

"I..." Ron looked away from Kim as he continued, as if ashamed of what he was about to say, "Part of my equipment since I started training at Yamanouchi is a few shuriken and a few throwing knives..." The women nodded and he glanced back at them. Shego only showed understanding. Kim knew he saw both her understanding and concern, but she hoped he realized it was concern for him, and she knew there was no condemnation in her eyes. There might have been, that day, but, after everything... She knew Shay hadn't heard the whole story, but she knew having those weapons had saved as many as one hundred lives...

"I took 'em out and threw them before the guys could get their weapons to bear..." Ron closed his eyes tightly, "I-I can still see their faces... They looked... They looked so_ sure _of what they were doing... Like Monkey Fist when he was attacking Yamanouchi with the Yono..." Ron opened his eyes again. They were less frightened, not as pain filled, but it was obvious that taking those lives was harder on him than he'd let on. "They... They were going to kill_ so many _people..." He looked at Shay, then Kim, his eyes begging them for forgiveness, "I_ had _to, but... Am... Am I a bad person, Shay? KP?"

"No, Ron..." Kim cried quietly, glancing at Shay and then throwing her arms around her fiancée when the older woman nodded. Shay joined her, heedless of the crawling sensation, the growl of disgust she heard in the back of her mind, "God, no... I heard about what you did, Ron... Read the report... They'd have killed so many people, like you said... Soldiers, civilians..._ You_..."

"That doesn't make you a bad person, or a monster..." Shay whispered in his ears as he stared at his clenched hands, "I promise... If you were a bad man, or worse, you wouldn't react like this to taking lives, Ron..." She took a deep, shuddering breath, "I... My Harley was a soldier, Ron, and he felt like this after a few of his missions... I'm..." She took another breath as Ron's scared, pleading eyes locked on hers, as if looking for a lie. She made sure to show him her sincerity, and steadied her voice, "Like I told Harley... If anything, it makes you a protector..."

"Yeah..." Kim agreed, squeezing Ron gently as he looked at her, "Ron... Are... Do you need to talk to Dr. Hauptfall?"

"I..." Ron thought about it. He didn't discard the idea immediately, but he glanced back and forth between the women he loved, he sighed and nodded, "Not now, but... Later... When she's off work, if she's able..."

"You can talk to us any time you need to, too." Shay gave him a soft smile as he looked at her, Kim doing the same when he turned back to her.

"God..." Ron muttered again, dislodging their arms briefly to bring a hand up to wipe his face, wiping at his eyes. He glanced between them, "I... Are you two okay? I didn't..."

"No," Shay answered quickly, "Harley used to have some nasty flashbacks, including physical reactions like that..." At Ron and Kim's inquisitive looks, she gave a melancholy half chuckle, "I know it's been years, but I've still got the instincts..."

"Thank God..." Ron whispered, then yawned heavily, "I don't feel like I've slept a wink."

"Maybe we'd_ all _better get a little bit more sleep." Kim suggested, snuggling up to Ron, who rewarded her with a gentle hug back.

"Yeah..." Shay murmured, standing and glancing down at them, "Bathroom break for me..."

"Um..." Kim blushed as she remembered what they'd been doing only ten minutes ago, "Me too..."

"Me three?" Ron gave a weak chuckle, and both ladies joined him. A moment later, he felt a tapping at his foot and saw Rufus looking up at him worriedly. He leaned down and petted his buddy, "Hey, Rufus... Just a nightma-..."

Kim sighed as she left the room, hoping her love would be alright. She quickly relieved herself and cleaned up, before making her way back to the bedroom. "Open." she murmured as she walked through the door.

"Be right back." Ron nodded, leaving the room as Shay was returning.

The older woman favored Kim with a serious expression, "D'you want the right or left side?"

"What do you mean?" Kim was confused for a moment, until Shay nodded at the bed.

"Will you be more comfortable snuggled up to his right or left side?" Shay asked, bemusing Kim further, but drawing an answer from the red-head.

"Right." She shrugged slightly, still somewhat confused as they heard the toilet flush.

"He needs both of us, tonight, I think..." Shay muttered, her face looking slightly ill at ease.

Kim nodded in sudden understanding, shock writ plainly on her face. She walked over to the older woman and threw her arms around her, "Thank you, Lover..."

"No big, Love..." Shay returned the hug, just as Ron came back in the room. Kim lay down on the right side of the bed, earning a confused look from Ron.

"What?" he asked, reaching up to scratch his head and obviously trying to act like he was confused.

"Trust us, Ronnie..." Kim smiled and patted the bed to her left, keeping silent until he shrugged and joined her, crawling over her to lay down. He lay on his right side and wrapped himself around Kim, his arms holding her close to him as he buried his face in her hair. Kim smiled and slid her left arm under his head, the smile growing as the bed sank slightly and Shay pulled herself up behind him. As she threw the sheets over them, it was plain she'd startled him quite a bit, as he blinked several times and his mouth opened and closed a few times in shock.

"Don't, Ron..." Kim begged softly when it seemed he was about to jump out of the bed.

He glanced at her in worry, but Kim's arms held him in place, as did Shay's voice as she snaked her left arm below his to wrap it around his chest, and her other slipped under his head above Kim's, allowing her to gently stroke Kim's neck. "You need this, Ron."

"But..." he started, but a shushing noise from Shego stopped him, confusing him more.

"No questions, Doofus!" Shay half barked, drawing a giggle from Kim and a startled squeak from Ron.

Kim draped her right arm around Ron's chest to lay her hand lazily on Shay's hip. The action drew a resigned but not unhappy sigh from the older woman as the red-head murmured, "Good night, Ron, Shay... I love you..."

"Love you too, Kim." Both of her lovers murmured at the same time, and she leaned her head forward to settle under Ron's chin, hoping her love would be alright soon. After one of the most intense orgasms of her life and the comedown from the adrenaline rush Ron's flashback nightmare had engendered, she was asleep before Ron started his response.

"Love ya both, too..." Ron murmured. He had already been ready to sleep, and was lightly snoring a few seconds after Kim, which drew a chuckle from Shego, despite her own feelings of worry.

"Sleep tight, Sport..." Shego murmured, giving him a light hug. He relaxed even more, and the pale woman felt an odd sense of relief and elation. She remained awake, however, staring at both Kim's angelic and Ron's goofy, but still cute, faces, hating herself for her weakness. She was enjoying the sensation of holding the young man in her arms, she truly was! But that voice was still there, taunting her, reminding her that, despite the differences, the young man that she was holding and comforting was so similar to her Harley, and it worried her. Because, for the life of her, she found she couldn't disagree with the voice's taunt that she was seeking to replace her lost love with him, no matter how much she tried...

**Author's Notes**

Well, there we are, hope it was worth the wait! Sorry for the delay again, but real life's been kickin' me and Neo's butts. And I'm going to short this AN's again 'cause, well, huge chapter. But I do have to say, the things that occur to a person on a road trip can, indeed, be deep... And sometimes_ quite _embarrassing! Then we have the family helpin' out Kim, Ron and Shego, and stumbling onto one_ hell _of a surprise! And finally, a bit of a sexy, tender and startling moment, and ending with yet more concerns and worries. Next chapter's going to explore more of the dynamic that Shego's beginning to see in Kim and Ron's relationship, and we get to see the results of Team Possible Bravo's actions!

Anyway, as always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work. As well, remember everyone, there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and remember: if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Forward**

Er, my apologies, I missed quite a few errors in this, I'm workin' on fixin' 'em right now. ^_^'' Anyway... Review reply time!

Guest: yes, yes they are... And of course, family and friends are always important! Ron and Kim, and now by extention, Shay, have that in spades!

Chris Beaver101: heh, more's coming, but slowly due to RL interfering. Hopefully I'll have plenty for reading over the next three weeks! Glad you're enjoying it!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

The boxers-clad blond half-stumbled to the railing above the half circular, half right angle diamond that made up the two and a half story, vaulted ceiling living room of Shay's Amsterdam home. He smiled as he heard music from the band Sublime echoing through the area, and began bobbing his head slightly along with the beat. Shay's home was two and a half stories tall, had four bedrooms and three and a half baths. Two of the baths were upstairs with the four bedrooms, the half bath was on the ground floor and the basement, converted into a workout area had the third bath, which was even more lavish than the master bedroom's attached bathroom.

The ground floor had an honest-to-goodness foyer, a library - liberally filled with books, many of them well read, and according to Shay, she had read all of the English, French and German language books at least once - a nicely appointed, modern kitchen and the positively huge living room. The house was an eclectic mix of styles, to say the least. The exterior was made up of an oddly well meshed nightmare of the art deco's tendency towards tall, geometric shapes and expressionism's penchant for rounded asymmetry, all bound together beautifully with art nouveau ornamental ironwork. The interior, on the other hand, while architecturally similar to the outside, was stylistically almost completely contemporary, even the ornamental ironwork fitting with the contemporary style.

Ron liked the place. The odd, occasional asymmetry was soothing, as was the interior's mix of pale pastel greens and blues, subtle earth tones, wood and soft, low pile carpet. For some reason, the blond was surprised to see the blinds in the living room windows both down and angled shut, but pushed it from his mind as he half stumbled down the stairs._ KP's gonna be the death of me... _he thought with a light blush, remembering how horny she'd been when she'd woken up and joined him in the shower, telling him she wanted more of him than she'd been taking.

Granted, she_ had _spent more time sexually with Shego than she had with him, almost three to one as far as times making love, but he'd never begrudged her one moment of the time! Not that he minded her joining him in the shower, of course, but tumbling down hardwood stairs with a thin carpeted covering bordered by a heavy, wrought iron railing because he was physically spent was_ not _his idea of fun!

Then he heard humming and singing coming from the kitchen, and he made his way over to the large, square opening of the breakfast bar between the living room and the kitchen. Any thoughts of how tired he was physically were forgotten by him and a certain part of his anatomy as he saw Shay._ Why, oh_ why _did she have to fulfill one of my fantasies without even asking? _he lamented; the tall woman was standing at the stove, and if not for the apron, the pale, pistachio colored woman would be completely nude._ If I wasn't in love before..._

The fact that she was singing along to the song, 'Smoke Two Joints' only added to her allure for some reason... And he planned on enjoying every moment, as she seemed_ completely _oblivious to his presence as she walked over to the very nice,_ very _modern, professional grade refrigerator. Opening it, she glanced about before bending over while quietly complaining, "Stupid bitch, shred your cheese_ before _starting on the omelettes! You_ know _better!"

He couldn't help but admire her tight, shapely rear as she went about the task of making omelets._ I still think Kim has the nicer ass, but_ damn,_ with those hips her ass, can_ move_! _A very short moment later, he fought off a sigh as he realized he was going to be uncomfortably hard for a little while. He honestly didn't care, in any way shape or form, of course, but it_ could_ end up being rather embarrassing!_ Still, she's my fiancée's girlfriend, she's seen it hard before, so I shouldn't let myself get_ too _embarrassed about it! __And if she minds, well, I'll know about it pretty soon..._That decided, he stood and made his way around to the kitchen door, calling out, "Hey, now, even_ I _forget things like that sometimes, Beautiful..."

"Ron!" Shay's exclamation startled a laugh out of Ron, as her surprised half shout ended in what Ron could only describe as a squeak, "Goddamn ninja, make some more noise why don'cha?"

"S-sorry, Sheeg-gs..." Ron pushed out through his chuckles. Shay huffed indignantly at him and turned towards the stove, and he walked over to take the cheese out of her hands, "H-here, let me get the cheese to make it up to you..."

"Fine..." she glowered at him, then noticed the bulge in his boxers and flushed, "Um... Good morning, by the way..."

"Morning." Ron smiled at her as he began to grate the sharp cheddar she'd chosen. Then he caught her glancing at him, a blush rising on his face to match hers as he realized she was stealing the occasional, almost guilty looking glance at his crotch, "Um, sorry..."

"For what?" she asked seriously, cocking her head slightly, "I mean... Yeah, I know you just had fun with Princess in the shower, but you're a teenager, so..." She shrugged and went back to monitoring the skillet on the gas stove in front of her.

"Well, I was pretty in control 'til I saw you like that..." Ron's blush intensified, wondering if she'd be annoyed at him for what he was about to say, "Um... Seeing a woman cook wearing_ just _an apron has been a fantasy of mine for, well, more than a couple years?"

Shay's blush was fading, and she fought to keep it from coming back with a vengeance. "Oh..." she muttered, "Um... I didn't know..."

"It's alright," Ron laughed lightly, "You couldn't have. But, well..." he gestured at his crotch and shrugged helplessly, chuckling nervously. He then noticed that Shay seemed distracted and ventured softly, "Um... You okay?"

"Hmmm?" Shay asked, then blinked and blushed, looking up at him, "Sorry, just... Memories." She bit her lip as she returned to the omelettes, before letting go of her lip and blowing her cheeks out in a frustrated exhalation, "Harley used to react the same way, Ron... Though he avoided the kitchen like the plague." She allowed a soft, melancholic titter at that, shaking her head before grabbing some of the cheese the blond had grated and sprinkled it on the frying eggs and vegetables. "He was actually worse in the kitchen than you and Kimmie have said she was..."

"Hey..." Ron murmured, his erection softening a bit as he heard the melancholy in her tone. He noticed then that she was tense, and without thinking about it, stepped behind her and began to softly massage her tense neck.

"Oohhh,_ that _feels good, Ron..." She almost hissed as he began working from the side of her neck along the trapezius muscle towards the shoulder, "I could really use this right now..."

"No big, rght?" Ron chuckled, "And it looked like you needed it... I hope I wasn't the cause?"

"No..." Shay murmured, "At least... Not directly." She glanced back at him and waited for him to nod before continuing, "It's just... You're a lot like Harley, Sport... And... When things like this hit me, it just makes me worry, y'know?"

"About what?" Ron asked, moving back in from her shoulders, down the bottom of the diamond that was her trapezius muscle. When he was down near her backbone, he found a particularly tight knot that was in both the trapezius and latissimus muscles, right next to a one of her vertebrae. With a guilty sigh, he muttered, "You didn't sleep too well last night, did you?"

"I slept fine, Ron..." She assured him, unconsciously leaning back into his hands, "I just ended up in a less than comfortable position when my pillow and my girlfriend went to have some hanky panky in my shower!" Shay giggled almost as if to let him know that was perfectly fine, her slight grimace of worry almost hidden by her position relative to Ron.

"Oh..." Ron chuckled with her, though the sound was slightly hollow even to his ears. He'd picked up on a note of something in her voice that was troubling, "Still, I feel bad about it..." He put a little bit more pressure between the now unknotted muscles, there was a subtle pop, and Shay stiffened slightly before relaxing back into him.

"Thank you..." Shay breathed, sighing in relief, "That would've been a problem later on, I'm sure..."

"Hey, it's what I'm here for, right?" Ron quipped as he continued massaging the areas of her back he could reach that weren't stuck between the two of them. He felt a flush rising on his face as he realized his manhood knew the position he was in, and he fought getting a hard on as much as he could. He thought of football, DNAmy in a bikini, and when that failed, Duff Killigan in a bikini... And felt unconscionably relieved as his budding erection reversed direction quickly. He chuckled as he realized Shay had her eyes closed and seemed to be lost in her own little world as he worked another knot just above her hip, "Hey, Shay, your eggs are gonna burn if you don't wake up."

"But I'm comfy..." she pouted, startling Ron._ I've never heard that tone in her voice... _She sounded both vulnerable and happy, content and willing to just stay right where she was. But she reluctantly opened her eyes to check the omelette, flipping it closed and onto a plate to the right of the stove. She pulled away from him and shook her hips and lower back a bit, in a display that raised Ron's blood pressure, "Hey, I still have some knots back there, Massage Boy!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Ron replied with a smart ass salute, earning a raspberry from his fiancée's girlfriend. Shaking his head while she poured the egg and cream mixture into the pan, followed by a generous helping of diced peppers and onions, he returned to the middle lower back, continuing what he'd started, "D'ya want me to get your legs and front, too?"

Shay stopped for a moment, blinking as she turned back to him with a raised eyebrow, "Massage only?"

"Doy?" Ron laughed at her concerned gaze. He leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss on the lips, startling her and making him chuckle a bit more, "Shay... I know you said you're not ready for anything more than what we've done... I'm_ fine _with that, 'kay? And if you're worried it'll make you uncomfortable, KP gives good massages too..."

"But not nearly as good as yours, Ronnie..." Kim called out from the breakfast bar. Both of her lovers turned back to her, smiling at her as she leaned back against the kitchen side of the bar, "Morning, Lover..."

"Morning..." Shay replied, accepting when Kim came over to wrap her arms around Ron and lean around him to kiss her, "Have fun in my shower?"

"Yup!" Kim answered, blushing slightly. She let go of Ron and moved to lean against the counter to Shay's right, just beyond where the plates for breakfast were sitting. She took a deep, appreciative sniff of the completed omelette, "These smell_ so _good!"

"Thanks, Pumpkin..." Shay murmured shyly, a small smile on her face. She moaned a moment later as Ron began to rub her shoulders proper, "If you keep that up, Doofus, I'm going to fall asleep cooking!"

"Well, how 'bout after breakfast, then?" Ron asked as he backed away to lean against the kitchen side of the breakfast bar, then glanced at the clock, "It's a quarter after six now, so five or ten minutes to eat... That should leave me with about a an hour and a half before the language class..."

"You're taking one of the free classes Amsterdam has for immigrants?" Shay asked, "I didn't know you had enough time to check up on that..."

"I set it up the other day..." Ron shrugged, "I ran across it when I was trying to find hotels and such to make reservations at. Figured we'd have more than enough time to take in stuff we want to, and that we'd have plenty of free time besides, so..." He reached up to scratch at the back of his neck, a sheepish look on his face.

"Goofball." Shego chuckled, shaking her head, "So what about you, Princess? Any plans?"

"Dunno." The redhead shrugged, "I was kinda hoping you'd show me around sometime," Kim bit her lip briefly as another thought occurred to her. She licked her lips as she looked up and down Shay's body and giggled slightly, "Or stay here... Spar a bit, maybe watch some TV or... Something?"

"Uh, oh..." Rufus said as he saw the look in Kim's eyes, which Shay and Ron seemed to miss.

"Sounds good, Cupcake." Shay sprinkled more cheese on the omelette and folded it over, not seeing the happy little jump Kim gave.

"I can't wait..." the red-head chirped, then moved towards the den, "Oh, Ron, Shay, Wade called and said we should turn the TV on to Vulpa Network News channel at 6:30..."

"Um..." Shay thought for a moment and did some time figuring, "Why the hell would we wanna watch 'The Truth Behind the Heroes Report'?" Her face was quite expressive in its immense dislike for the show, and left Kim shrugging unknowingly. Ron snorted at the name as he went about pouring four glasses of orange juice, one in a kiddie cup for Rufus, and started sipping at his.

"Not sure, but he says I should love it..." Kim shook her head and walked into the living room, turning on the large screen TV and calling to ask, "Um, what channel number is Vulpa? And what's with the language, I can't read Dutch!"

"Neither can I, Cupcake!" Shay called back, titering at the little joke she'd played on her Princess, "Switch it to English, bottom row of the remote for settings, language is the first choice..." They could hear Kim griping under her breath, and Shay added, "You should've known that one yourself, silly!" Ron, who had just taken a sip, almost choked on it hearing such a comment from Shay. She glanced back at him in confusion as he began laughing, then over at Kim as she began to giggle, "What?"

"Just..." Ron half choked, smiling at her, "Just not used to seeing you acting like that... Being so carefree, playing a joke as goofy as changing a TV's language settings, stuff like that... It's sexy and cute, y'know?"

"Oh..." Shay turned back to her last omelette, flushing again. The look on her face made it obvious she wasn't used to it herself, nor was she used to such easy compliments.

"You sure you're okay?" Ron asked quietly, so Kim didn't hear, "I'm not maki-..."

"Stop, Ron." Shay said seriously, leveling a stern gaze at him, "One, I do like you, but... We're still feeling each other out._ Both _of us will have to stop walking on eggshells, right?" Ron nodded solemnly at her, "So... Just relax with me, 'kay? I'll let you know if you've pushed too far. My boundaries are a bit funny, which is why you walking around in your underwear popping a boner was okay. Au naturale and such. But," she waved her spatula at him in warning "when I tell you that you're pushing me too far, you better back off!" her stern visage dropped slightly when he raised his hands in mock fearful surrender, shaking her head at him, "Anyway... Just 'cause I said I have limits, I don't want to even have to _think_ about_ you _pushing_ yourself _too hard and turn into something you're not, Doofus. Kimmie... Kimmie shouldn't worry about us getting along... Or us turning into something we're not... I..." She reached for words that weren't there, her voice faltering slightly, her eyes staring off at something only she could see.

"And_ I _will point out if I see_ you _pushing yourself too far in the same way, deal?" Ron interrupted her gently, cupping her face in his palms. When she nodded, he leaned forward and gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead. He smiled and turned to join Kim on the couch, not seeing the pang of regretful familiarity that flashed across Shay's face...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Kim, Ron and Shego sat before the huge HDTV in her living room, alternatively grousing and outright laughing at the show and its sometimes sneaky, sometimes outright laughable attempts to 'tell the truth' about the heroes of the world, and the United States in particular. Kim was still dressed in a tee-shirt and panties, and Ron his boxers, but to spare Ron's hormones for at least a little while, Shego had changed into a housecoat._ I'll only wear it through breakfast and this show, though! _she thought deviously, thoroughly enjoying the feeling of Ron wanting her so blatantly,_ And if anything's to ever come of this, I'll have to get him used to me like that, anyway..._

_Oh, poor girl... _the familiar, almost Shego, but not quite Shego voice whispered through her mind,_ Wanting the innocent little boy to be used to being around the whore... Maybe you'll turn Kimmie into one, too? _There was a pause in the voice's comments, then it added in a far to chipper tone,_ Oh, hey,_ look_! It's the reporter that made her name showing you slutting around the clubs in Go City! Good thing she never got any good videos or pictures of you, but it made_ all _the difference in Greggy's opinion of you, didn't it?_

Shego bit the inside of her lip hard enough to taste blood, but otherwise ignored the voice as the head anchor began to speak after thanking one of the program's 'researchers' for his input. "And that's why I never could fully trust the scantily clad bimbo!" Deegan Tripe's sarcastic voice called out from Shego's rather expensive entertainment system, "I mean, if she can't keep her relationships straight, how can she keep what's going on in a combat situation straight?"

"I would be remiss in disagreeing about how..." Tripe's co-host for the show, Kachay Rayne, pursed her lips in disapproval before continuing, "Improper it is to just lead on her girlfriend and her ex-lover... But she_ has _seemed to hold her own quite well with her hero work in southern California."

"Oh, Jesus..." Shego muttered, pulling her legs away from Ron's talented hands, pulling her feet half under her to rant at the screen, "She's a player, and neither of those girls are her girlfriend, you stupid bitch!"

"How d'ya know that?" Ron asked, blinking as Shego began to blush brightly and ignore the mild argument between the co-hosts .

"I..." Shego glowered at Ron, and sighed when she caught Kim's equally curious expression, "One of the times I was over in Greece... Um, remember when big, green and ugly was working with Drew?" Her friends nodded in understanding, and she continued with a slightly strained voice, "Well, she was on vacation at the same resort, and, well... She_ is _hot, and reminded a drunken me of Vivi, so..."

"Is that why you were so annoyed when I busted in?" Kim prodded slyly from her place on the floor, reaching up and back to run a gentle, tickling finger along the bottom of Shay's feet. The older woman squeaked and her feet shot out, just missing Ron and putting her shapely legs back in his lap, much to his, Kim and Rufus' amusement.

"Bitch!" Shego snapped good naturedly, reaching out to ruffle Kim's hair, "I hate my feet being tickled!" Kim tried to look contrite, but the urchin like grin on her face drew a raspberry from Shego before she continued, "Anyway, yeah... After Midas got done beating my back into submission that day, I had a nice, long makeout session planned with strawberries, cream and honey..."

"Oooo..." Kim drew the word out huskily, drawing her friends' gazes to her, "I like the sounds of that..."

"Maybe Doofus and I will do something about it tonight..." She winked at Ron, then waited for Kim's eyes to light up before adding, "Or some time, anyway..."

"Hey!" Kim objected, giving Shego a pout that bordered on the infamous PDP, "No fair teasing me!"

"I thought you liked it when Shay teased ya, KP?" Ron asked innocently, giving Shego a thumb's up and a wink.

"I do, but..." Kim started, but a cough from Shego stopped her.

"Show, Princess..." Shego chortled, mouthing to Ron, "When you come back?" nodding subtly at Kim and giving him a wink, which the blond nodded to quite enthusiastically.

"But you have to admit, it's only a matter of time before her split loyalties - and her obvious inability to make the hard choices - between lovers leads her to screwing up when it counts."

Ms. Rayne seemed to ponder this for a moment before nodding reluctantly, "Well, let's hope it never comes to that."

"Hope_ and _pray!" Tripe agreed, before turning to the camera with a troubled face, "And speaking of split loyalties, we have some news from Germany about the events last week near Frankfurt." With that, scenes of the devastated train car that Shego had almost died in, as well as the rest of the train appeared on the screen over her right shoulder. There was also a few tarps over what were obviously bodies, which caused Ron to stiffen slightly.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Sport..." Shego murmured, pulling her legs back and spreading them, patting the couch between her legs, "Get over here, or you'll be too tense to think straight." Ron reluctantly agreed, turning himself around on the couch to settle between her legs and following Shego's gentle urging to lean forward. She smiled slightly as she began to return the neck and backrub favor, but none of the occupants of the room could drag their attention from the screen, "Besides, from what I can tell, she hasn't once implied any of that was a screw up on our part..."

Ron grumbled in reluctant agreement with Shego's comment, easing back into her at her gentle urging before focusing completely on the screen, where Tripe was discussing the facts of the GJ, German government and US Army joint press release, "We've received confirmation that the terrorist group, the October Front for Worldwide Liberation, or OFWL, attacked a train upon which a different, unnamed terrorist had planted a weapon of mass destruction. No civilians were hurt in the altercation, but we have received word that most of the OFWL agents were killed in the ensuing gun battle. We have received confirmation that Team Possible, and former superheroine turned thief turned superheroine again, Shego, assisted US Army and UN troops in securing the device. Team Possible was, thankfully, uninvolved in the ensuing gun battle, and while Shego was apparently injured while disarming the device, she has since made a full recovery."

"Well,_ that's _good to hear!" Rayne enthused, earning a grudging nod of agreement from Tripe.

"Yes, it is..." Kim agreed, her tone dangerous as she watched the screen, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"Indeed, but, unfortunately, that brings us to the truth of the situation." Tripe's face took on a worried bent as she focused on the camera, "We've also been hearing rumors on the internet about Team Possible and their vacation - something no one in the world can begrudge them, considering how much they've done for the world - that have some troublesome undercurrents. Their first stop was Germany's Oktoberfest, an annual festival held in Munich since 1810..."

A picture of Kim and Ron, sitting next to Shego in the_ Schottenhamel Festhalle,_ a half empty_ Maß _of beer in front of Shego, a partially emptied one next to Kim and Ron, "Team Possible and Shego - who was hired by the Munich city government as a security consultant and operative upon rumors of a theft of a memorial beer tap - managed thwart the thieves, and received seats of honor in the_ Schottenhamel Festhalle _beer tent, where they had a nice meal and a stein of beer."

"Well, it's good to see she can let her hair down like any other teenager in the world," Rayne mused softly, "And if that image is any indication, quite responsibly, as well!"

"Yes, if_ that _image was any indication..." Tripe sighed, and looked out into the audience, pausing for a brief, but significant moment.

"Oh, don't you_ dare_!" Ron exclaimed suddenly, turning as much as he could in his position between Shego's legs to give the screen a look of rather vile hatred, "What, Kim didn't get drunk in college, so_ now _you're going to claim she's an alcoholic college coed?"

"Ron!" Kim snapped, turning to favor him with a stern glare.

He snapped his mouth shut, but didn't sit back. He glanced to his left to see Shego unlimbering herself to sit beside him, her gaze as heated as his and her mouth moving silently with her thoughts,_ If that bitch says_ anything _wrong about_ my _Princess or_ our _Ron..._

'_Our Ron' is it, now, Shego?_ a familiar voice oozed through her conscious mind,_ You sure you can handle that? I mean, as you've pointed out, he's a lot like Harley, in so many ways, isn't he?_

Shego ignored the voice as Degan Tripe opened her mouth to speak, "As you can see with the video, taken by a cell phone camera, my worries about college life - and its impact on her relationship with Ronald Stoppable - may not have been so ill founded..." the video feed from her anchor desk blanked to a video, a stunt she'd done every time she had a major story about a hero or heroine that may be 'falling', for all the world to see...

_Deegan Tripe stood before a massive monitor, a familiar jumpsuit on, but with the head cowling pulled back from her face, She was yelling at the screen, the audio subdued as if at a distance, "...Gemini that Agent Delta needs to speak to him, now, you insignificant little peon!"_

_"Y-yes, ma'am!" the poor man on the screen, an agent Team Possible recognised as a Lambda, croaked nervously. Ten seconds later, Gemini was on screen, looking quite pleased with himself._

_"Report, Agent Delta!" he muttered, making a 'come on' gesture with his fingers._

"_Sir, the images just came in today, and they'll be perfect!" Tripe, revealed as Agent Delta, crowed at the screen, "The shots you got from that German fansite, and the videos the agents you had in Munich took were absolutely flawless... With the right spin, those shots will make turning Possible into an out-of-control teenager a cinch!"_

"You've gotta be kidding me..." Kim whispered, then almost jumped out of her skin.

"You fucking whore!" Shego and Ron roared at the same time, standing in near combat stances as if they could jump through the screen and grab her all the way from Amsterdam. Rufus was jumping up and down on the coffee table, screaming in naked mole rat and shaking his fist at the screen.

"G-guys?" Kim stuttered, shocked at their reactions.

"Oh, she's gonna pay..." Shego growled, not hearing Kim nor realizing her plasma was lit.

"In spades!" Ron agreed, his teeth clenched and his breathing hard.

"Calm down, guys!" Kim barked as she realized that Ron's eyes were glowing a dangerous blue as well, "Just... Let this finish, okay?"

"_...are you certain those extras will be necessary, Agent Delta?" Gemini asked, the teens, Rufus and Shego having obviously missed part of their conversation. The madman on the screen leaned forward forward slightly, "So far, you've managed to put doubt in people's heads about several heroes and heroines, but Possible, Stoppable and Shego - hell, even that madman, Lipsky - are nigh untouchable after the Lowardians... Their word, and their reputations are nearly impregnable, too."_

"_I have that covered, Gemini..." Tripe's voice was exultant and vicious at once, "I have a remote interview scheduled with her math teacher from GCU... He's not only a man of standing, he's a man who was a teacher! She apparently caused him some trouble with the Dean's office at GCU, since she apparently sucks at math, so he'll do nothing but help our cause... Whether he knows it or not!"_

_"Very well done, Agent Delta!" Gemini beamed at the woman, "And even if you don't manage to succeed fully, you will plant the seeds of doubt in people's minds."_

_"That is my hope, sir!" Tripe answered, standing straight and saluting Gemini._

There were more growls from Shego and Ron, and an indignant scoff from Rufus, but Kim shushed them with hurried hand gestures.

_"As soon as you are finished, I think it'll be time to arrange a little... Accident... For Deegan Tripe!" Gemini continued, "Don't you agree, Agent Delta?"_

_"Yes, sir." Tripe nodded, glancing to her left, "Delta Three has everything set up... And if we can pull this off and spin it right, it'll make Possible look even worse!"_

_"Excellen-..."_ The video feed cut off with a squeal of interference, and the feed cut back to the main desk, where a confused Deegan Tripe and Kachay Rayne were looking around as a member of the audio/video booth staff came running out, several papers in his hand.

"Miss Tripe, there's been a problem with the video feed! It showed you in some strange costu-hurnk!" The man fell forward to the sound of a taser discharging, an odd weapon that had been hidden by his papers flying from his hand as he fell. The camera view changed to a longer view, normally reserved for advertisement breaks showing off the rest of the studio, as dozens of police and men in blue uniforms stormed the set, the men in blue wielding strange weapons or pointing their wrists at people, hands pointed down and their opposite hand almost resting on what appeared to be a wristwatch.

"Oh, holy shit!" Shego howled with laughter as sudden as her anger, falling back onto her couch, grabbing Ron and pulling him down with her, giving him a big hug before leaning down to hug Kim tightly, "Oh, this is_ awesome_!"

"What's going on?" Deegan Tripe screamed from the screen, while at the same time Kim and Ron asked the same words in shock, the latter two looking between Shego and the screen in confusion. Tripe wore an expression that said she knew the jig was up, but turned to the camera still operating, obviously not wanting it recorded, "Turn the cameras of-..."

"Our men have the cameras, Miss Tripe." the blue uniformed man in the lead, a small, wiry looking man in his forties, intoned, "Deegan Tripe, aka Worldwide Evil Empire Agent Delta, I'm here on orders of Global Justice and the UNSC Committee on Villainy and Supervillainy to place you under arrest." The man stepped forward and Tripe held her hands up, an unreadable expression on her face as he read her Miranda Rights, "Do you understand the rights as I have read them to you?"

"Yes." Tripe then smirked in a smug manner, "And the five hundred men in the base below this station will assure me that I don't have to worry about them!"

"Six hundred and fifty two, including yourself, ma'am." Deegan's face fell, her eyes widening in shock, "We're quite well aware of them, as we are in the process of picking them up after knockout gas was filtered into the lair. Now, if you'll come with us peacefully?"

"I don't think s-..." The video feed cut off, replaced by the Vulpa Network news desk, a shocked appearing anchorman staring at a video screen off to his left.

A moment later, he glanced up and began speaking, "Shocking developments in our Denver offices-..."

Wade's face replaced the news broadcast, causing everyone to jump when he called out, "Hey, guys!" Kim and Ron groaned when they saw Wade had kept the flight capabilities of his older Kimmunicators in the Mark Four that was flying down from the second floor, the camera trained on them.

"What the_ hell _was that about, Wade?" Kim finally exploded, her frustration, anger and especially her fear of being outed as a bisexual in such a cold, impersonal manner coming to a head with Wade's almost smug grin.

"Kimmie?" Shego and Ron both stared at her, Shego continuing, her worry for Kim making her voice unusually soft, "Calm down, KP, I'm sure Wade has a perfectly reasonable explanation..."

"Uh, yeah, I do, actually..." the young black man chuckled with some chagrin, "It shouldn't have even gotten to that point, but GJ was delayed by some tough knots of resistance in the WWEE base below Vulpa Network's Denver building, they had to get Joss and Felix down there for help... And from what I can see on their website already, it might've worked out for the better?" He shrugged when he realized all of them were giving him a confused expression, "It seems that seeing the first part of her broadcast, and then the first part of her story on you, reinforced the fact that she's been out to get heroes, especially you, for some time..."

"Fine..." Kim griped, "But next time, a bit of warning, Wade? I've been sitting here worried sick that Shego and I would be outed by that... That..."

"'Fucking whore'?" Ron asked, blushing slightly as he realized he'd spoken just as crassly as he and Shego had earlier, without the benefit of the heightened emotions of the moment.

"Ron!" Kim and Wade both gasped, drawing a flush from the blond and a loud titter from Shego.

"Maybe I'm a bad influence, after all?" Shego asked after her giggle fit subsided.

"No," Kim sighed, "I'm sure Mom and Joss had worse things to say..."

"Yeah..." Wade gulped, flushing darkly enough for it to be visible despite his skin tone, "I... Honestly didn't know your mom knew words like that."

"Her mother was a sailor." Kim shrugged, smiling slightly as the relief finally started to sink in, "And, well... Grandma Clarice was always outspoken..."

"So, crisis averted..." Wade gulped as he looked up, then he leaned in and whispered, "And just to let you know, your moms and dads want to talk to you, Ron, Kim... And you too, Shego."

"Figures..." Shego sighed, worried about the conversation she knew would eventually come. She glanced at Wade's image on the screen, taking in his worry and then at Ron and Kim, "Should we just get it over with, if they're there?"

"Yeah..." Kim and Ron sighed together, Kim continuing as she clambered off of the floor to squeeze in to Shego's left, "Are they all there, Wade?" Wade nodded and glanced up, waving towards himself and his console, "We're as ready as we can be."

A moment later the monitor was filled with the relieved faces of Kim and Ron's mothers, the uncomfortable face of James Possible, and the unreadable face of Gene Stoppable. Anne started it, "Kimmie, before you say anything, we've all talked about this, and I've seen some of the pictures..."

"What pictures?" Kim asked in a confused tone. That tone became annoyed as she noticed Gene frown slightly, "What, Mr. Stoppable."

"These pictures..." Anne cut in as Jean Stoppable gave her husband a rather scathing glare, which seemed to calm him a little bit. The screen split to show several images from the German fansite, pictures that surprised Ron and Kim, and left Shego feeling a mix of resigned annoyance and an odd sense of pride that she could look so relaxed around the two, despite her misgivings.

_Oh, yes... _the voice that plagued her whispered,_ Proud of screwing someone_ else's _fiancée while their_ parents _talk to them about life changing decisions, and you can't even stand the boy touching you most the time, can you?_

She ignored the voice, realizing, for once, that the argument it made was mostly flat bluster, and concentrated on the feeling of relief when she realized her face wasn't betraying her feelings. She even managed to smile softly when she saw the image of Kim sitting in her lap and giving Ron quite a kiss... She'd remembered that, and was somewhat glad that the photographer had moved on before she'd shared a brief peck on the lips with Ron... And a kiss to rival Kim and Ron's a moment later with the red-head. Still smiling, she addressed the four parents, "That was the night I got back from my nearly week's stay in the hospital..."

"You were really in the hospital that long?" Gene asked in surprise, seeming to be completely caught off guard by her comment.

"Broken ribs, humerus, bunch of internal damage." Shego nodded, seeing the... Disgust wasn't correct, or at least, not directed at her... But when he looked at Kim and Ron, it was there. She narrowed her eyes, "I took the device out, and it had a shitload of Semtex in it... I took that job because I couldn't stand the thought of Kim and Ron getting hurt... Or killed."

"And I still say we should've stuck together." Kim pouted worriedly, "You had me..." She glanced at Ron and Rufus with an apologetic smile, "_All _of us worried..." With that she lifted her hand to Shego's shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze, startling the four parents on the other end. She glanced back, and Shego noticed the pleased light in her eye, and figured she wanted to control the conversation. She noticed Ron had opened his mouth, figuring he'd seen his dad's reaction and reached over to squeeze his hand. He glanced at her and snapped his mouth shut, drawing more confusion from the parents at the intimate gesture, before their attention was focused on Kim once again. "As to the pictures, I'm sure you're wondering if I've become a booze guzzling college whore?"

Jean and Anne gasped, James and Gene looked angry, and it was the lattermost that spoke up finally, his voice surprisingly angry and quite stern, "We never thought that, Kimberly!"

"Oh?" Kim prodded, raising an eyebrow and focusing on Gene, "You seemed pretty damn disgusted with Ron and I, I figured tha-..."

"Kimmie-cub!" James finally gasped, "Young lady..." He stopped and took a deep breath, before closing his eyes and touching Anne's hand.

"Gene wasn't disgusted with you two... Er, three..." Anne started, but Kim again interrupted.

"He was acting like it!" Kim snapped, only stopping when Gene sighed and hung his head.

"I'm not disgusted with you," Gene spoke again, his voice tense, "I'm just... Disappointed you chose to hide something like this from us. We thought, as your parents, we should have been among the first people you'd have told about it!"

"Maybe this_ is _our way of telling you?" Ron quipped, astounding everyone with his chipper tone.

"Ronald Stoppable!" Jean snapped, shock evident on her face.

"Sucks, don't it, Mom?" Ron smirked, then became serious, "And, yes, that's why we agreed to chat with you... We've only just recovered from that mission, and I'm_ still _having issues with it. We had no idea about this plan against KP and I, and apparently Shego, and we were planning on calling you later this evening, here, when you were all awake to talk about it! Like adults, y'know? But here you are, acting like we're stupid kids!"

"That's now how we were trying to act, Ronald," Anne finally spoke again, frowning, "And I think you know that. And while I'm sure it felt good to get back at your parents with that, they've been going through counseling for that particular problem of theirs..."

"Okay..." Kim agreed, sighing and some of the tension leaving her. She leveled a serious gaze at her mother, however, and prodded, "My question still stands, Mom. Was that what you were calling to ask?"

"Not_ that _question, Kimmie-cub..." James sighed, "We were wanting to know if there was something going on, either between you and Shego, Shego and Ronald, all three of you, or what?"

"Kind of an 'or what?', really..." Shego said before Ron and Kim could. Seeing that Kim and Ron had ceded the floor to her, and that the parents were expecting an answer, she continued in a serious tone, "I'm in love with Princess here with every fiber of my being..." She glanced at Kim and Ron as if asking permission to speak for them, and they both nodded, "And... Kimmie's in love with me, says she loves me just as much as I do her... But_ still _loves Ron with all her heart... And Ron loves KP as much as he ever has, but... He says he loves me the way he does her... And... That's where the 'or what?' comes in..."

"What do you mean?" Gene asked, his face showing some surprise that the pale woman sitting between his son and his son's fiancée seemed so used his son's nickname for Kim.

"Well..." Shego sighed, biting her lip nervously. She knew it would end up coming to this, but she didn't want to rip open old emotional wounds further than they already had been.

_Oh, don't tell me you're chickening out? _the voice taunted,_ I mean, after all, they're here to listen to how you're screwing around with your precious Kimmie and leading poor, innocent Ronnie on!_

_Shut the fuck up! _Shego barely resisted saying it aloud, not realizing her face was betraying her emotion.

_Oh, I'm sorry... _the voice didn't sound particularly contrite,_ He's not quite so innocent anymore, is he? All those flashbacks, bad things, bad things... _The voice held an almost gleefully secretive tone,_ I mean, his mind must be almost as messed up as_ yours _is! Maybe we should tell them we're arguing with ourself? Of course, if_ your _family knew what was going on, I'm sure they'd give you a piece of their minds, unlike Kimmie and Ronnie's weak willed sperm donors!_

_Don't even go there..._ Shay hissed inside her mind,_ They love their children, Jody's grown up, and the twins have always been cool..._

_Ah, yes..._ the voice tittered,_ But you always worried about how your big brother felt, and he made that clear over time, didn't he?_

_Just _shut up_! _Shego roared in her mind,_ This is _completely_ different!_

"What's wrong, Shay?" Kim asked, squeezing her shoulder again before pulling her into a hug.

"Sorry, sorry, just..." Shego waved a hand around, not realizing her eyes were wet with unshed tears, "Arguing with myself about Harley..." She blinked several times before focusing her gaze on the Possible and Stoppable parents. Taking a deep breath, she began to explain how she was in a general sense, that she loved who she loved and gender didn't matter... About Harley, her relationship with him... And then she moved on - with plenty of input from Kim and Ron - to how, after the first couple of missions, she'd stopped trying to hurt Kim, and had instead moved into an almost mentor-like role with her, at least from her end of things. She glossed over a lot, but hit the high points, not wanting to either bore everyone or go into too much detail.

Finally, when it came to Ron, she shrugged helplessly. She was worried about speaking the whole truth to her love and Ron's parents, so she continued to gloss over things, at least a little bit. "With Ron, I... I honestly don't know where we'll end up. I like Ron, love him as a friend, maybe..." she shook her head sharply, "But for now, I'm not_ sure_... I-I... I've only recently begun to let myself heal from losing my Harlan... I... I just_ can't _risk that, if I get too close to Ron, too fast, that I'll end up hurting him, Kimmie... Myself... By using him to replace Harley... So, 'til I can get past this, maybe let Harley go... Until I know for sure whether I'm not just trying to latch onto someone that reminds me of Harley or... Or what... I just don't know..."

She reached up to rub at her eyes, surprised that she was no longer crying... And equally surprised to feel two sets of arms around her and two adoring gazes upon her. She glanced right and left, seeing first Ron's eyes, still moist with tears that were leaving trails down his cheeks, and to Kim's face, which was surprisingly stoic, but she could see the pain in her eyes... Pain for her, which still surprised her after all the years she'd hurt the two teens.

"Thank you, Shay." Gene's soft murmur brought all of their attention to him, and he sighed, "I... _Was _disgusted earlier, but_ not _with what could be happening... It was with how that Tripe woman was so willing to throw it out in the public, without the least concern for your feelings and privacy..." He looked between the three of them, lingering somewhat more on Ron than Kim or Shego, "I'm sorry you thought I was disgusted in any way with you... I just couldn't stand how how it was being used against you two... You_ three_... It's not_ normal_, your relationship, but..." He chuckled softly, focusing on his son, "You remember your uncles Bernie and Benjy, and their friend Abigail?" Ron nodded and Gene's laugh became a little watery, "You remember asking, back when Abigail died, why we were visiting with them when they buried her?"

"I was ten..." Ron blushed slightly, "I kinda figured it out the last time we visited Uncle Bern 'n' Ben, Dad... I saw the picture of them in suits and her in a dress..."

"And I've always believed in you holding up the Stoppable family motto!" Dean said firmly, sighing slightly, "I'm sure Jean's family will have a fit when this gets out, but..."

"We could care less." Jean said firmly, before glancing at the Possible's, "And while there's... Reservations all around..." She held up a finger when the three people in in Amsterdam opened their mouths to protest, "About public reception... We're not going to judge you."

"That's right." James agreed, then sighed, "I can't say I'm exactly happy about this, Kimmie-cub... But... As long as you're happy, and understand the potential consequences?"

Anne nodded in agreement, "And knowing you, Kimmie, you won't hide this..."

"Why should I?" Kim asked sharply, "What is there to be ashamed of in this? I love Ron as much as I ever have, but Shay..." Kim glanced over, blushing slightly, "She's... She's just so... She's as perfect for me as Ron is, just in different ways, and ever since she stopped being so brutal in our fights, I've respected her... It really wasn't too much of a stretch to fall for her."

"In that case..." Anne murmured, "Would you like to... Out yourself in a way_ you _can control?"

"How?" Ron asked curiously, beating Shego to the punch. She giggled slightly, relieved that the parents seemed to be okay with their odd relationship.

The sound startled the parents, thought the Possibles seemed to find it somewhat familiar,_ At least I don't sound as vacant as Miss Go when_ I _giggle... _Shego thought with a sigh.

"Um..." Anne said, giving her head a little shake, "Summer Gale."

"Summer Gale?" Kim asked incredulously, "I know she's gotten better since the Li'l Diablos, but..."

"Her former cameraman is who clued us in on what that Tripe woman was doing." James said with some disgust in his voice, "And Anne contacted her to see if she'd be interested in putting a few other rumors to rest about what happened at GCU. She seemed quite sincere when we spoke about it..."

"I think it's a good idea to get an interview with her." Ron shrugged in agreement.

Shego nodded with Ron, "And her show seems to make people feel sympathy with those being interviewed, not hostility." She glanced down at the seemingly lost in thought Kim and ruffled her hair, "And I don't see her getting waterworks out of you, so you might be a first for her, Kimmie!" Shego chuckled, earning a raspberry for her comment. Shego turned to the Possibles and Stoppables, "Are you guys sure you're okay with this?" At their confused looks, she gave a wry twist of the lips, "I might never feel more than friendship with Ron... Losing my li'l Samantha before she could even_ be_, then Harley..." She swallowed slightly, surprised that she could say it without more hesitation than that or tears filling her eyes, "Harley's death..."

"We understand." James said firmly and smilingly, much in the way Kim had when she'd found out how badly Ron blamed himself for Warhok and Warmonga's deaths, "I'm sure it'll work out, either way, but..."

"We might want to imply it's an all-together thing?" Kim asked, earning a blush from her father, a startled squawk from Shego, and laughter from everyone else. She glanced over at Shego, who was stuck somewhere between blushing and spluttering an objection, "Shay, it makes sense... And it'll keep people from hounding us about Ron, wanting the two of us to 'dump the third wheel' or some stupid shit like that!"

_Oh, why not tell them the truth?_ the voice within Shego taunted,_ She's scared to screw the blond because she's afraid she'll love it too much and turn into a whore again!_

_Hardly..._ Shego thought sardonically,_ Yes, he reminds me of Harley, but I can't pretend I hate it all... I actually_ like _some of it..._

_Oh? _the voice prodded,_ Like what? Anything you'd care to share with your girlfriend's family? Or her _fiancé's_ family?_

_Kissing him isn't bad, _Shego answered,_ and snuggling with him last night wasn't as bad as I was worried it'd be..._

_That's why you made sure to scrub your front oh-so-thoroughly? _the voice oozed out seductively,_ Making sure you couldn't smell him and think of how he smells? Like_ Harley _always did?_

"Kimmie!" came from James and Jean, startling a chuckle from the distracted Shego and the slightly nervous Ron, and a general sigh of acceptance from the rest. James glanced at Jean, and the Stoppable matriarch said firmly, "You'd better not use that language around young and impressionable people, young lady!"

"No big, Mom!" Ron chuckled, "She rarely says stuff like that around anyone other than adults, trust me. And she rarely uses it unless she's way stressed..."

"I'd better not hear that kind of language around Hana." Jean grumped, giving Gene a stern glare which caused the Stoppable patriarch to reach up and scratch the back of his neck nervously.

"Um, before I agree to this..." Shego cut in, "I'm going to have to talk to Harley's family... 'Cause I'll probably have to explain how we became so close, so quickly..."

"How's tomorrow work?" Wade cut in as he stepped up behind them, "Presuming you can get ahold of everyone that you need to, Shego?"

"Fine, Nerdlinger..." Shego quipped with a grin, before her grin faded into a smile, "And... The name's Shay, to you guys..."

"Thank you..." Anne said softly, her eyes telling Shego more than anything that the red-headed neurosurgeon knew just how much that meant, "And thank you for taking care of Kimmie and Ronald, Shay... But you'd better not be reckless like that again, because of something happens to you, it'll hurt them..." She paused, and Shego felt a stronger surge of respect than she already felt for the doctor.

"Just remember," James cut in, eyeing Shay warily, "I _am_ a rocket scientist. You hurt my little Kimmie-cub and I'll have you on a rocket going straight into a black hole!"

"Dad!" Kim sighed and rolled her eyes, blushing slightly at her father's protectiveness, and giving him a good, solid glare.

"Er... Sorry, Kimmie-cub..." James sighed, shaking his head, "Habit and all that..."

"As long as you're not serious about it, Daddy..." Kim sighed, shaking her head, "Anyway, good bye, guys, we have stuff to do this morning!"

"Good bye, Kimmie, Ronald, Rufus, She-... Er, Shay." James said, Gene and Jean making similarly stumbling good byes before Wade cut the connection.

"Oh, God..." Kim sat back, letting all the air in her lungs out in a rush, "That was hard..."

"Still okay with being public about..." Shego started, but Ron's hand on hers stopped her.

"You shouldn't finish that, or our Princess'll get testy." Ron smiled at her, then startled her by half hugging, half tackling her onto Kim, pressing her bosom into Kim's face and hugging them both, "Thanks for not blowing up, KP..._ Especially _not blowing up at your Dad or mine!"

"N-no big..." Kim stammered, blushing at the beautiful pair of breasts pressed around her face, "But could you, y'know, let us up?"

Ron leaned over the slightly annoyed Shego's shoulder, shocking the annoyance out of the older woman by giving her a quick kiss on the corner of her lips, he stared down at Kim uncomprehendingly, "What do ya mean, KP?"

"I was satisfied before breakfast, but this is a turn on, dammit!" Kim half squealed in embarrassment... That squeal became peals of laughter as Shego glanced down at the flushing red-head underneath her and started tickling her.

"We'll just have to do something about that, then!" Shego declared with an evil grin, then glanced back at Ron, trying to ignore the half erection she felt pressing into her right buttock, "Get 'er feet, Sport!"

"No, no, no-no-no! Don't you_ dar-eeaaahhhhehehehe_!" Kim's giggles were punctuated by attempts at begging them to stop and she quickly became breathless, "Please, I gotta_ pee_!" she finally managed, which caused both of them to stop. Shego clambered off of her and ended up leaning back into Ron, heedless of the fact that her robe had opened almost completely. Kim gave them a scathing glare as she shoved herself to her feet and ran towards the downstairs bathroom, "Maybe more than pee..." she groused as she walked away from them, not realizing she'd spoken aloud until she heard a titter from Ron. She glanced back at them, growling out, "I'm going to get you two back for that!"

"Lookin' forward to it, Cupcake!" Shego declared with a chuckle, watching her ass move in her boyshort style panties, "God, that's hot..."

"KP's perfect ass?" Ron asked as he went back to massaging her, running hands over the top of her pectorals, "Or that perfect ass in boyshorts?"

"Both..." Shego groaned as she lay back into Ron easily, moaning as he began to concentrate his massage where the pectoralis and anterior head of the deltoid attach to the clavicle. He was careful not to use too much pressure, considering the amount of nerve endings the area contained, and when she looked up at him, it was obvious he was pleased by her reaction. "When did you learn to do this?" she asked in a distant tone.

"I've done this for KP for years..." Ron murmured as he moved on to the still tense region of her pectoralis that was also the upper curve of her breasts, "I picked up a few pointers from one of the physical therapists at Middleton General, too."

"You're almost as good as Midas!" Shego stated blandly, "And_ he _has two different physical therapy degrees and about two dozen certifications..."

"Thanks!" Ron said brightly, moving back up to her deltoids before moving down to her upper arms. He continued his startlingly knowledgeable massage, making her feel almost jelly like just from the attention he gave her arms, and she closed her eyes, luxuriating in the sensations.

Shego was about to say more when an all to familiar voice whispered malevolently into her mind,_ Don't get too comfortable, Shego... I mean, there's a cock rubbing the small of your back..._ Shego stiffened slightly, cringing a little, her eyes tightening in their closed state as the truth of the statement hit her. She felt an almost physical pang in her heart, while her center warmed at the thought._ Yes, feel that? Your whore's instincts are ready, but are you?_ She could almost hear the smug chuckle, could almost picture an image of herself with a thoughtful finger laid alongside her chin... But not, as it was surrounded by a strange outline with the features that were just outside of her reach, but familiar, so tantalizingly familiar..._ Then again, maybe you should take him for a spin! You just might forget you're trying to replace your precious,_ dead _Harley with him! Or maybe you're trying to pretend that man that loved you so, so much never died in the first place?_

"Dammit..." Shego murmured, unsure if she was responding to the voice or cursing Ron. She almost complained when he stopped for a moment, looking up at him and the concerned, soft brown eyes staring at her. She immediately regretted looking as twinge of familiarity washed through her,_ His eyes are like Harley's, too..._

"You okay, Shay?" Ron prodded gently, moving his hands back to her shoulders, "D'ya want me to stop?"

"I..." Shay began, then took a breath and shook her head, "Not really, but..." She bit her lip for a moment and looked away from him, her gaze troubled. "Harley used to give me massages, from time to time, and... I just remembered how those usually turned out and I guess I might've had a little bit of a freak out?"

"Then we should probably stop..." Ron murmured softly, smoothing some of her short bangs from her forehead. He couldn't hide the slight hurt in his eyes, something which caused her heart to pang unhappily.

_Dammit!_ she screamed in her head, even as she nodded in agreement,_ Why does he have to be so... So him? Why..._ She tried to find some anger, but all she felt was regret, and guilt, for making him stop. She scooted down a bit, and turned onto her right side, laying her head on his leg, and staring angrily towards the living room window._ Why does he have to be so soothing and so damn okay with my problems, even when I'm hurting him?_

"No worries, Shay." Ron said when he saw her face clouding with a complex mix of emotions, "When the time's right, it won't be a worry, even if it never goes that far, right?" Ron eased her face back to look up at him, smiling down at her, "I'm patient, y'know..."

"You've been too good to me." Shay pouted a bit, staring up at him with a gaze that telegraphed her guilt and regret plainly, "I don't deserve a friend like you, let alon-..."

"None of that." Ron smiled, leaning down towards her a bit. "KP and I love you, and we won't have the woman we love beating herself up about still hurting over losing someone precious, y'know?" She pursed her lips and nodded, closing her eyes and letting out a long sigh, surprised to feel the guilt washing out with the breath. She felt him move again and glanced up, seeing his lips moving towards her forehead.

_Oh, not you don't! _Shay told him mentally,_ I'm still a bad girl, even if I'm a good guy!_ With that thought, she flinched herself back a bit, until her lips were in line with his, and leaned up to close the kiss.

"Mmrmph?" Ron managed as his eyes flew wide. Shay slid her eyes closed, smirking slightly against his mouth, swallowing the howling scream in her head and with it the instant, almost overwhelming worry and self directed disgust as she relaxed into the kiss. She pushed into him slightly, letting her tongue slide between his still open, shocked lips. He slowly relaxed into the kiss, his tongue gently probing back against hers as his arms encircled her shoulders, sparring but with a gentleness that pleased her, his tongue against hers like water against granite. She sighed into the kiss, relaxing despite the revulsion she felt roiling in her gut, only pulling back when she felt the last of his tension release.

"Um, Shay, I..." Ron started when she laid her head back down on his leg, but she reached up with a finger to silence him, before glancing at his rather exposed crotch.

"Say you're sorry and I'll punch you." She stated firmly, smirking as he gulped in worry, "That's better. That was_ me _apologizing to you, for, well... For being such a coward."

"Shay, you're..." Ron started, and she made a fist, raising an eyebrow dangerously.

"No back talk, now, either. I mean what I said, earlier, Ron..." Shay murmured, "I love you as a friend, and maybe... Well, maybe more, but I don't know..." She took a deep breath in as he nodded, sighing out her next words, "Until I get over this... Problem, I can't promise anything."

"Shay..." Ron said again, sighing and relaxing his whole body for a moment, as if in preparation for a strike or an escape attempt... But he kept his arms around her, "You don't have to promise anything, now or ever, as either a friend or a lover... Confronting your grief with Harley? That took more courage than I've ever thought about having..." She grimaced, and he leaned down quickly to plant the kiss on her forehead he'd intended to a moment earlier. "And you're willing to announce to the world how you feel. You're one of the bravest people I've met, Shay, and that's just one of the reasons I love you." She thought about his words for a moment, wanting to argue, but... He made some sense, and she_ liked _him loving her, even if it hurt and brought up so much pain in her heart. She shrugged and gave him a half hearted smile to let him know she was willing to agree, at least a little bit.

"Good... Now that that's over... Would it be alright if I just hold you for a few?" Ron asked, earning a chuckle and a nod from Shay.

They stayed like that for another few minutes, until the former thief began to feel a subtle bit of claustrophobia from the contact._ At least his hard on's gone down... _She chuckled at her observation and looked at the clock to take note of the time._ Well, at least I have a reason for having him let go... _she thought as she spoke up, "You driving Ron?"

"Yeah..." Ron nodded, glancing at the clock, "I'd better go get ready and head out, it'll take me a bit to find the place and such."

"I could take you, y'know..." Shay murmured, and Ron shook his head, but with a thankful smile on his face.

"This'll be better for me..." Ron assured her, "That way, I can have a leg up on learning the written part of the language, seeing all the signs and stuff."

"Oh, okay." Shay nodded, kissing his neck teasingly before sitting up just enough to let him stand, "Drive safe, Doofus."

"I will." Ron promised as he walked towards the downstairs bathroom to tell Kim he was taking off.

Shay smiled as she watched his retreating backside, snickering softly,_ He does have a nicer ass than Harley..._

_You're gonna hang your hopes on a couple of differences,_ Shego_? _the voice taunted,_ Gonna pin your dreams of getting past your one true love's death on an often imbecilic sidekick,_ Shego_?_

Shego... Shay... The former thief shook her head, not understanding why the voice was emphasizing her name, but knowing, somehow, that it was important. She hadn't realized, for those precious minutes, that she'd started to think of herself as Shay Gottlieb, but she'd... Liked it. A lot... She'd felt closer to Ron, to her new life, in those moments, but as she watched him dash upstairs, she couldn't help but wonder why her sudden headache lessened as she thought about herself as Shego...

_A little pain's never scared me..._ She-..._ I'm Shay Gottlieb, dammit!_ she screamed at herself, and felt the headache intensify a bit.

_Didn't she die with... Harley?_ the voice cooed, then retreated, the words echoing through her mind.

_Yes..._ She thought as she stared at the spot Ron had been only moments earlier,_ No... She only went into hiding, like a coward... But Ronnie and Kimmie... They're bringing her back. _With that thought, she sat up just enough to slip her housecoat off and slip it out from under her, tossing it to the loveseat a few feet away._ I can't wait to see Princess' face..._ With that thought, Shay lay back down on her couch. She firmly ignored the slight headache that referring to herself as_ herself _brought on, and lay her head on the armrest, taking in Ron's scent as she turned the channel to a history-centric channel. She knew it would be hard, but she was determined from that moment on to_ never _lose herself as she had so many years ago, no matter how much of a headache it gave her or how much she didn't want to be herself...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Kim giggled as Shay began to come fully back to consciousness, breathing heavily all the while and occasionally moaning as her mind began to awaken._ Okay, offering her a wake up call was a good idea..._ she congratulated herself mentally,_ and so was walking around nude... I like it! _She almost paused her ministrations to the older woman's sex when those emerald green eyes opened and focused on her... But decided to keep up, her tongue gently lapping at the hardened clit and her fingers gently probing the every so slightly different texture of Shay's g-spot.

"Pumpk-innnghh..." Shay breathed out as Kim pressed up into the spot, giggling again as the former thief shuddered against her. Her eyes softened as the woman she loved kept eye contact, a mix of confusion, lust and something that straddled the border of annoyance and thanks clearly visible.

She slowly removed her fingers and gentled her lapping until her lover had come down from the orgasm, keeping eye contact the whole time. Finally Shay was able to speak, and favored Kim with a more serious look, "Not that I mind the wake up call, Princess, but there's better ways to wake someone up, you know..."

"I know." Kim chirped, smiling softly up at Shay as she crawled up the older woman's body, biting her lip cutely when Shay's eyes narrowed slightly, "But... I just wanted to return the favor from this morning..." Kim blushed faintly when her love relaxed and returned the soft smile with one of her own. Kim snuggled into the older woman's tight, muscular body, marveling again at the feminine softness under her._ I know they both say I'm feminine, but I wish I could mix athletic and soft the way she does..._

"God, you're gorgeous..." Kim sighed happily as the older woman's arms slipped around her, and she began to trace gentle patterns up and down Shay's taut stomach. She laid a gentle kiss to the pale woman's collarbone, laying the palm of her hand against the area she'd been tracing, "I wish I could pull off having just a little more bodyfat, but I look horrible; you look perfect..."

"Well, Princess..." Shay whispered into the red-head's hair, "I'm glad you're like this... Besides, too much more bodyfat on you would ruin that perfect ass you have."

Kim flushed and looked up at her lover, smiling brightly, "Thanks! Ron likes my butt, too. I wish I had a bit more hip, but I'll live with the loves of my life thinking it's perfect!" Shay laughed at that, leaning down a bit to bite at Kim's nose, which drew the hand on her stomach up to cover that bodypart. "Hey, no rough stuff..." Kim groused, dropping her hand against Shay's breast and giving a gentle squeeze, before trailing her fingertips to caress her waist, "Or I'll pay you back by finding your ticklish spot!"

"Don't have one outside of my feet, Cupcake!" Shay chuckled, then moaned slightly as Kim ran her leg along her still wet sex. She raised an eyebrow, her face a mix of serious and teasing, "Hey, didn't you get enough?"

Kim heard the seriousness within the teasing and cocked her head at Shay, "Don't you like having sex with me?"

"No, I don't_ like _sex at all!" Shay said in complete seriousness, making Kim's jaw drop in shock. She was about to protest when the older woman chuckled again, pulling Kim over onto her body so they lay completely face to face, "I_ love _sex, Kimmie... But there_ is _such a thing as too much..."

"Uh, yeah, I guess?" Kim blushed brightly, glancing away, "But... I really love to have sex with you, as much as with Ron..."

"Do you have as much with him as we've had?" Shay prodded, drawing a rather big sigh out of her red-headed lover.

"Honestly?" Kim asked, looking back at Shay when the older woman nodded, "Not quite, but... Um..."

Shay's eyes widened as Kim's blush suddenly erupted, crawling far enough down the red-head's body that she felt it finally stop under her fingers... Which were at the small of the younger woman's back. "Okay,_ this _just_ has _to be good for a blush like that!"

"W-well, um..." Kim stammered, her blush darkening slightly, "I'm kinda hoping to catch you up to where I am with Ron?" Shay's eyes shot wide, and she let loose a full bodied belly laugh, one that would have ended up with her on the floor had she not been lying on the couch. "Shay!" Kim protested when the laughter had continued for almost a full minute, "Okay, okay, I get that it's silly but..." The older woman stopped laughing suddenly, biting her lips to stop the mirth but her body still shaking from the effort to hold back the laughter, tears of mirth in her eyes. Kim swatted her shoulder and sat up on her knees, half glaring down at her lover, "It sounded a lot better in my head, dammit!"

"I-I'm s-s-sure..." Shay managed to squeeze out, snorting a few laughs through her nose. When Kim groaned and made to get up, she wrapped her arms around Kim's waist and pulled her down, managing to speak in a level tone, despite the humor still plainly audible, "Hey, now, don't be like that, KP..."

"Shay, 's not funny..." Kim complained against Shay's neck, a pout fully audible in her voice.

"Sure it is!" Shay chuckled, running her hands through Kim's long hair, "And it's sweet that you feel that way, but I had other ideas on how to spend the morning."

"Like what?" Kim asked, intrigued despite the pout she still held, "I'm kinda bored and wanna do something other than see the sights today."

"Oh, it's quite physical..." Shay grinned as Kim drew back, her eyebrows screwed together in confusion, "Sparring, Princess... I've got a nice basement with heavily reinforced, plasma resistant walls, so I could even use the plasma, if you wanted..."

"You mean it?" Kim asked eagerly, her pout dropped like a bomb. When Shay gave her a lazy, Cheshire Cat like grin and nod, Kim squealed in delight, "Spankin'!"

"Such a teenager..." Shay murmured, then reached up to give Kim a brief tickle just below the armpits, which made the red-head giggle and swat her shoulder in protest, "Now, go get that sexy ass mission gear of yours on, I'll get mine on, and we'll go at it as seriously as we can for an hour or three..."

"Okay!" Kim chirped, leaning down and giving Shay a deep, loving kiss. She jumped up and, in a move she knew was quite smart assed, summersaulted over the couch. Shay didn't seem to mind when she glanced over her shoulder, seeing the raven haired beauty's eyes firmly locked onto her ass._ Enjoying the view, Shay?_ she asked silently as she put a sway into her hips she knew left Ron drooling as she walked up the stairs to the bedroom.

Kim sighed to herself as she walked out of Shay's line of sight; she_ was _a little disappointed that the older woman had chosen not to have sex with her. But... She couldn't begrudge the reasonings. Quickly moving to her bag, she all but ripped her mission clothes out, a completely different kind of excitement flowing through her._ No need to make sex just something else to do, especially when there's_ so much_ other stuff to do!..._

_I just can't get over her body... Or the sounds she makes when I touch her... Or the way she makes me_ feel_! _With a huge smile, she barely restrained a jubilant squeal of happiness._ I'm_ so _lucky to have her and Ron! A few weeks ago, I'd have just accepted it, but after last night..._ The orgasm Shay had given her had been incredible, but the realizations she'd made still struck her painfully. She hadn't realized how... Horrible she'd been to people._ I know I've been kinda selfish before, but that was just... That was_ ferociously _bad. At least I still have my loves, and they want to stay with me..._ A brief flash of her parents, the tweebs, her friends... All of them, people she considered family...

_Family, too! _she nodded to herself firmly,_ I screwed up, but I can fix it, with them backing me up... _She glanced over and saw a picture of Shay when she was younger, dressed in her old catsuit. She was receiving an award from a man she recognised as the chairman of Go City's City Council, and she saw an open smile on the younger Shay's face._ I couldn't have done this without you, Shay..._ she grinned at the thought, and at how happy Shay looked. A smile she'd only seen so recently, despite knowing the older woman for years._ Even as much as Ron loves me, I needed someone else to point it out... Ron might not even have noticed, since he's been around me so much, but with you being so new to our relationship, you picked up on it so quickly, that something was still off... _She chuckled a bit,_ Even if you hadn't helped me with this, I'm just glad you're with us now!_

Kim noticed something underneath the picture, a caption taken from a newspaper and set into the frame below the picture._ "Go City's own heroine, Shego, receiving the 'Thanks of the City' award for her actions, which resulted in the capture of ten known fugitives and the supercriminal known as Avarius. At only eighteen, this amazing young woman is considered one of the top ten superheroes in the United States, and has protected Go City with her brothers in Team Go for the last three years." _Kim's smile widened as she looked at the picture, seeing how much different she looked than when she'd first seen the former thief. Her gaze was softer, almost unburdened and she seemed to glow with happiness._ The paper is right, she was amazing... _Shaking her head, she sighed again, but it was a more relaxed, happy sound, and she murmured aloud, "She's still amazing..."

"Thanks, Kim..." Shay whispered in her ear, slowly wrapping the red-head in her arms, "That means... That means a_ lot_, coming from you."

"No big..." Kim murmured, setting the picture down to turn in the arms around her and plant a brief kiss on Shay's lips, "And you are... You helped bring me out of my stupidity, and then helped me realize just what it was. You stopped that chemical attack, and didn't even think of your own safety, putting Rufus' first..." She gave the older woman, who was sporting a pleased blush, another kiss, "You_ are _amazing, Shay... And I'm_ so _lucky to count you among my best friends, and my love, just like Ron..."

Shay pulled the younger woman into a hug, shaking her head fondly, "You silly girl..._ I'm _supposed to be the lucky one, remember?" Kim giggled slightly and pulled back, Shay allowing her hands to trail back far enough that her hands rested on the red-head's shoulders, "So, ready to spar?"

"Just have to get dressed..." Kim quirked a smile at the older woman, unabashedly taking her body in with a sweeping gaze, "And you'd better get dressed, or I'll rethink the sparring in your basement and turn it into sparring in my beautiful girlfriend's bed!"

"Fine, fine..." Shay sighed as if put out, before winking at Kim and smiling evilly, "Though that_ does _sound like fun, Princess! Like I said, I_ love _sex, I just don't want it to be meaningless boredom filler!"

"Maybe after we spar," Kim began, making a show of wiggling her ass while pulling her suit on, "The two of us can take a nice, long soak in that jacuzzi in the downstairs bath?"

"Winner gives the other a massage..." Shay said innocently, and Kim found her gaze becoming unfocused as she slid her arms into her sleeves. She spent a few seconds in thought, imagining the older woman's hands roaming all over her body, rubbing out kinks and tension... She shook her head and glanced back, grinning ear to ear.

"Oh, you're_ so _going down!" Kim declared, standing and sealing her suit, before turning and giving Shay her old, heroic pose, drawing an appreciative laugh from the older woman. _This, _the red-head thought,_ is going to be fun!_

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Ron wore an off kilter smile as he stepped into Shay's house, absentmindedly adjusting his grip on the bag of goodies in his hand, still too amazed at his skills with language to pay much attention to the outside world beyond the basics. After kicking his shoes off, he stepped through the foyer and into the living room, shaking his head as he went._ A two hour class, and I have the language down,_ he shook his head in wonder,_ both spoken_ and _written!_

He'd struggled through Latin in high school, and was starting to suffer at Spanish - which he sometimes needed in order to deal with green card carrying laborers bringing things to the restaurant - despite Wade designing a program to teach him the language. It wasn't until Kim had mentioned how easily he'd come to understand both Rufus and Roachie, who she'd said were both animals like humans, that the light bulb had gone off in his head. A soft chitter in his ear almost made him laugh, considering his thoughts, as Rufus finished climbing up his shirt from his pocket, and muttered, "No way, Rufus, the cheese is for later."

Rufus shrugged and settled down on Ron's shoulder, letting out a despondent sigh, and Ron shook his head, going back to his prior train of thought. After he accepted that humans were animals when it came to languages, too, he'd become what Wade had called an 'omniglot'. All he needed was a couple minutes of exposure to a language to speak it at an only slightly clumsy conversational level. Give him an hour of 'street' exposure, two hours of academic exposure, or a day with a language book, and Ron just_ got _it. He was just drawing a breath to call out to Kim and Shay, when Rufus put a paw over his lips and shushed him.

Ron glanced at Rufus, who was pointing at the living room couch. There, curled together, were the ladies he was looking for. Both were quite nude, but because of their positions, they looked incredibly cute together without looking particularly erotic. Kim wore a soft, content smile, and had her hands curled up under her chin, both wrapped around Shay's left hand, the older woman's arm nestled between their breasts. The other woman's right arm was curled about Kim's neck and shoulders, holding the smaller woman close, her chin nestled atop Kim's head. He also realized that, despite the way Kim had been the last couple weeks, that there was no odor of sex in the air, so he figured that, indeed, they hadn't done anything other than snuggle together.

He looked down their bodies, forcing himself to restrain a laugh as he saw their legs. They were entwined in such a way as to almost look like they were fighting for dominance of who had what leg where. Again, though, it was obviously for comfort, as opposed to sensuality.

_Crazy women… _he chuckled lightly at the thought, shaking his head as he walked to the kitchen to put away the goodies for later. When he got to the kitchen, he glanced at Rufus and murmured, "Okay, a small slice of cheese for the save." Rufus made a victory gesture, making Ron chuckle as he withdrew the block of cheese and set it on the counter, trusting Rufus not to hog it. Rufus took a small slice off and wrapped the cheese up as Ron got the rest of the groceries out, setting them aside for where they were going.

Rufus' cheese, the strawberries and the cream went into the refrigerator, and the honey went into the cupboard. The latter three items he made sure to hide behind other items, just in case Kim got snoopy. The 'American style BBQ beef jerky' and soda he'd found at a convenience store he decided to place on the coffee table between the couch and the loveseat for watching some TV. Before he sat down, though, he then made his way up to the bedroom and grabbed a sheet from Shay's dresser, bringing it downstairs and covering the ladies with it. While he was certain that they'd stay plenty warm with the former thief's excess body heat, he didn't want to take any chances.

After he was done, he flipped the entertainment system over to its TV setting and gathered up his jerky and soda, carefully opening both so he didn't wake up the two women he loved. He surfed the channels until he found the Foodie's Channel, his gaze slipping back to the beautiful sight of the ladies before he got engrossed in anything that came on. He could still see their faces rather clearly due to his position, which allowed him to see a pair of barely awake, beautiful green eyes staring at him, and he smiled at his fiancée. "Go ahead and go back to sleep, KP…" he whispered.

She nodded with a content sigh, seemingly completely happy with him being there, mumbling softly, "L've you, Ronnie…" She then gave Shay a stare that held the unwonted seriousness of someone still mostly asleep, and leaned forward to plant a feather light kiss to the security consultant's lips, "L've you, too, Shay…"

Ron's smile widened as Kim nuzzled back under Shay's chin, the older woman smiling softly at Kim's words and actions, then readjusted herself to make them both more comfortable, even in her sleep. He shook his head again, whispering before turning back to the TV, "Love you both, too…"

No one was awake or aware enough to see Shay's smile widen slightly at his declaration…

**Author's Notes**

Not much to say this time around, other than it's good to have family and friends willing to help out, and that from appearances, as much as part of Shay is fighting her attraction to Ron, another part has accepted... The question is... Which will win?

And, as always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work. As well, remember everyone, there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and remember: if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Foreword**

As usual, sorry for the delays, RL is a painful mistress. And now… Review replies!

studyofchaos: thanks for the review! Glad you're enjoying the story and how the relationships are progressing.

Jimmy1201: the tension, obviously, isn't of the bad sort, just the typical concern of a parent for a child… And their children's friends. As for what's going on with Shego? Stay tuned, it's just getting started.

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Ron!" Kim snapped, reaching out with a foot to tap the side of the loveseat he was napping in. A nap that had, from what she could see, turned into the first few moments of a flashback. "_Ron!_"

"Wha-…" Ron started awake, looking around and breathing heavily. He blinked a few times and let out a long sigh, shaking his head, "Sorry, KP, guess I fell asleep…"

"And started having another flashback." Kim added in a droll tone, before squatting down and enfolding him in a hug. When she pulled back, Ron looked at her in a confused manner, making her shake her head slightly. She half stood, turned and sat down beside him, throwing her arms around him and kissing his cheek. "You okay, Ronnie?" she asked, pouting slightly in her worry.

"I'm fine now…" Ron smiled softly, making Kim shake her head.

She turned his face towards her and ran her fingertips down his cheeks, letting him see the worry in her eyes, "Hey… You'd better call and talk to Ima, Ron…"

"I will…" he nodded, and when she opened her mouth to speak, he held up a finger, "First, let me get supper started and catch a shower, 'kay? You know both of those always help me…"

"Okay…" Kim nodded, pursing her lips slightly, "But you'd better call her as soon as you have some time in between stuff in the kitchen." Ron nodded and she raised her voice slightly, "I mean it, Ron!"

"I will, KP!" Ron snapped, then held up a hand as her anger rose, her pursed lips turning into a frown, "Seriously, KP, you can even dial when I put the chicken into the oven, 'kay? I just…" He sighed, taking her hands in his and kissing her fingertips. Against her own still rising anger, she let herself calm down enough to hear him out, "I want to be a bit more awake, first, KP… Then I can present her with clearer feeling-…"

"One of these days," Kim snipped at him, her anger finally leveling off, but not lessening much, "You're going to have to call her_ right _after one of these things, Ron…" Ron opened his mouth to speak, but Kim cut him off, "I'm not going to argue about this, Ron, and it's non-negotiable! She asked that of you, and you agreed to it!"

She stood with a sigh and took a few steps away, wrapping her arms around her torso. She knew that some of her anger was at herself, for not having seen how he was hurting after Warhok and Warmonga's deaths, and that she couldn't help him more than she had. She heard him stand, and despite stiffening slightly when his arms went around her, she relaxed, letting her anger flow out from her. "Sorry, Ron, I'm just…"

"I know, KP…" Ron's voice was a tad concerned over her anger, but mostly relieved, "I know you want to help me, but you said yourself you'd rather avoid doing something you're untrained at if you can…"

"I just want to help you, Ron…" Kim murmured, barely above a whisper, "I feel so… Useless sometimes. After all the shit I put you and everyone else through…"

"Hey! No down talking yourself and no cussing yourself out, either!" Ron raised his voice a bit now, and Kim flinched at his stern tone, realizing she'd cursed without thinking about it.

_T was right, _Kim thought ruefully,_ it does get easier if you're not careful… _She sighed and leaned back into her fiancé, "Sorry, Ron… I'm just… After what I realized this morning and all…"

"I get it, KP." She could hear the smile in his voice, and allowed herself to be turned in place to look up at him, relaxing as he put his forehead against hers, "And it's okay. No permanent harm done…" Ron paused, then smirked slightly, making Kim feel a bit worried, "Tell ya what… While you dial Ima, how 'bout I dial Mo, and we can sit in the living room talking to them together, so we both know we're doing it?"

"Hey!" Kim defended weakly, "I was gonna call her when Shay and I got done sparring, but we ended up napping…" She realized only then that he was teasing her, and slapped his shoulder, "Ron Stoppable, you're a jerk at times!"

"Probably why you love him so much, Princess…" Shay chuckled as she walked out of the upstairs office, leaning against the railing. Kim glanced up and flushed slightly, having forgotten that Shay, and herself, were still both quite nude. "Anyway, not a bad idea, but I'd suggest taking it in the office up here… I know you guys don't have any problems including me in on this, but if that ass Gemini is after you for some reason, we don't need to give him any ammunition, y'know?"

"Good point." Ron said, nodding, "So, how'd_ your _calls go, Shay?"

"Good." Shay nodded with a slightly melancholy expression, "They're probably gonna get an interview or two with Harley's mom and dad, and possibly one with Harry in Germany before getting to Amsterdam." Ron and Kim nodded, and Shay added, "I also called Wade, and had a brief conference call with Gale… 'Cause of the additions, it might not be 'til Wednesday or Thursday morning that we do the interview, but that's the latest, since it'll broadcast Thursday night…"

"That works, then…" Ron nodded, smiling slightly, "I got a message from Yori via Wade that there's some Yamanouchi business that needs to be taken care of on Tuesday, but I have to meet up with her in a couple hours to go over it…" He looked at Kim when she raised an eyebrow, placing a hand on her shoulder, "Hey, she said it was simple business, they just wanted me there since I was in town."

Kim sighed and leaned her head to the side, nuzzling her cheek into his hand. "I hope so…" she murmured, placing a kiss against his palm, "I don't want you getting roughed up before an interview that'll be on nationwide TV back home!"

"Probably international, actually…" Shay interjected as she made her way down the staircase, "Since Gale's show is popular in Britain, and anything Team Possible - and_ especially _Ron Stoppable - is gold in Germany!"

"True…" Kim sighed, looking a bit nervous at the prospect of coming out so publicly, and Ron being alone with the beautiful ninja, despite her apparent relationship with Motor Ed.

"No worries, KP!" Ron chuckled, gently running tickling fingers along her waist to distract her. She let out a small squeak and turned to give him a dirty look, feeling a touch embarrassed that both of her loves could make her squeak like that, "We'll completely destroy this interview! I'm sure there's going to be a jerk or twelve out there, but that's nothing compared to what I'm sure are thousands of people that'll be positive about it!"

"Or at least neutrally supportive…" Shay added, drawing a contemplative nod from Ron.

"Hey, I can accept that!" Ron quipped with a grin, then turned to Kim, "Can you, KP?"

"Yeah, I guess." she sighed, shrugging slightly, "I just… I wish people wouldn't make such a big deal out of it, y'know? It's my life, I should be able to live it without a microscope on me! Sure, I save the world, but I'm jus-…"

"If you say, 'basic, average girl'," Shay interrupted with a smirk, placing a hand on Ron's, which was still on her shoulder, "I have some bruising that'd like to take exception with it!"

"But…" Kim started, then remembered some of the conversation she and Shay had during their sparring earlier. She flushed slightly, remembering that she had admitted to being exceptional… When it came to martial arts, anyway. "Okay, I'll grant you, I'm not… Normal, by most people's definition, but, really, except for my martial arts, I'm_ not _all that exceptional… Especially among my family!"

She shrugged and reached up to squeeze both of their hands, before turning away and walking into the kitchen, calling back through the window of the breakfast bar, "I mean, yeah, my I.Q. says I should be a genius, but I'm one of the lowest in my family… Hell, even_ Bonnie _was in the running with me for Valedictorian… And Justine beat us both by a mile!" She paused to glance back at them, sighing slightly, "And, sure, I'm gifted athletically, but Joss is stronger than I am now, and Nana was better than me at kung fu 'til about a year and a half ago…"

"And that actually_ helps _me to make the case I was trying to earlier, Princess…" Shay nodded, taking a seat on the living room side of the breakfast bar, Ron joining her a moment later. When Kim cocked her head at her, she nodded towards the fridge, "Y'wanna grab me a root beer?"

"Me too." Ron agreed.

Kim turned to comply, and Shay continued her thought, "Y'know how I said that you're exceptional compared to normal people, and even a lot of heroes and villains? Well, even among your family, you're exceptional!"

"How do you figure?" Kim asked curiously, handing them their sodas.

"Okay, take Joss…" Shay murmured, "She's stronger than you… But she's also_ built _for strength despite her height! From what you and Ron said, when she hit fourteen she had a growth spurt that left her as tall as me, if not taller, and that left her_ more _broad shouldered than Ronnie, even at fourteen, right?" Kim nodded, and Shay continued, "And since she was all gangly despite the broad shoulders, she spent two to three hours a day in the gym, five days a week ever since,_ and _she's worked on an operational ranch for her entire life, so her strength and size make sense! But, that aside, I'd bet she's_ slower _than you in reaction speed and general movement, and not nearly as flexible."

"Okay…" Kim started, holding a hand out, palm up, as if to ask Shay her point.

"It's like this, Kimmie," Shay offered, smiling at Kim's seeming obtuseness, "Sure she has you beat in raw power, but you're plenty strong on your own_ and _you have years of martial experience on her! Your reaction time and speed of thought is incredibly fast, and you are, from what Ron's told me,_ smarter _than her in general." Kim pouted slightly at that, and Shego shook her head in an almost sad manner, "_Obviously _you're going to lag behind in her chosen_ university _level field of study, but you know more about more subjects than her, right?"

Kim nodded grudgingly and Shay went on with a firm tone, "Now, lets think about this another way… Could anyone in your family - or anyone you know for that matter - react as fast as you do to a combat situation? Can they make complex, multi-branch,_ logical _and_ reasoned _decisions at the speed of instinct level thought, and then _execute_ them at the same speed? Can they process physics problems with incredible accuracy -_ and _use them to their advantage as you do - but completely on the fly from the time they were sixteen without years, or even decades of training, or superpowers?" To illustrate her point, she lit up a hand, letting the plasma gutter for a moment before dousing it and raising an eyebrow at Kim.

"No one aside from you… Ron when he's being a distraction or the MMP is active… Maybe Dr. Director, or Nana when she was younger?" Kim blushed when the realization of what Shay was getting at struck. She did not like to think about herself as particularly exceptional, she really didn't… But, with Shay laying it out as she was… She had to admit, calling herself a 'basic, average girl' was a bit arrogant. Granted, she had aspects of just that; she loved shopping, gossip, looking at attractive boys - and now she could admit attraction to a few women she'd known, thanks to her relationship with Shay - loved cheerleading and hated aspects of school… But she was more. Much more. And it might just be time to admit it, if only to herself and a few close acquaintances. "Okay… You have a point, but, well…"

"It was incredibly hard for me to accept that I truly_ was _exceptional after the comet, Kim," Shay said quietly into the growing silence, "Instead of just believing I was 'cause mom and dad said so…"

"Same with me after the MMP, KP…" Ron smiled as she glanced at him, "I understand, Kim… You've never wanted anything just given to you, and you_ have _had to work for what you have… But, for some things, it just… Happened. You made it look easy. Look at that cheer routine Bonnie gave you in junior high… There's Olympic gymnasts that couldn't have pulled that off!_ Bonnie_, who was the best on the squad at the time, might not have been able to do it, and she's exceptionally gifted, physically… And you just…" He made a tossing away gesture, "Threw it out, like, 'Boom!' And don't even get me started on the Paisley mansion…"

Ron smiled and reached out at the same time as Shay when Kim flushed deeply and looked away, the two of them taking her free hand gently in their free hands. Shay glanced at him and nodded, taking over, "But that right there, that humility that makes you embarrassed because of your skills, your innate abilities… That_ desire _to just be a 'basic, everyday girl', despite it all… Some people think it's false modesty, but we know better… The people in your life that_ matter _know better… And hopefully, after this interview? Everyone in the_ world _will, too." Kim glanced back, and Shay nodded, recalling the very words Kim had used in reference to her earlier in the day, "You're amazing, Princess… But what makes you amazing isn't just your brain, or your skills, your body, or your looks…" She set her drink down and reached out with to tap Kim gently in the chest, right where her heart was, "It's this… Everything your family, your friends… What_ all _of them instilled in_ here_, that makes you so amazing… What makes you the woman we love…" She placed her hand back down, covering both Kim and Ron's hands, squeezing them both gently to emphasize her words, "_That _is what makes you Kim Possible."

"I-I thought it was the stubborn streak I got from both sides of the family that made me me like that." she murmured softly, biting her lip as she looked up at her loves, "My 'Kimness' and all…" They both wore smiles at her joke, yet their gazes spoke of deep, unconditional love, and that simple feeling made her heart break… Yet it was_ not _the kind of heartbreak that resulted from pain of loss. Instead, it was from the simple realization of something that had been there, but never fully realized. Ron and Shay's words were much like a sculptor casting a bronze in a sand mold; the metal had finally cooled and the sculptor was breaking away the sand, revealing the work underneath. Finally, Kim began to understand a little about herself… That she_ was _exceptional, yet, at the same time, she was just that 'regular, average girl'…

But… She didn't understand why she was so seemingly exceptional. Yeah, she_ did _do exceptional, even amazing things! Yet, as Shay herself had just pointed out, there were other men and women that could do things like her. Bonnie_ was _exceptionally athletic, as was Shay and even Betty Director, who was in her late twenties or mid thirties! All of them could keep up with her when it came to fitness… And Ron, well, he'd always done some amazing things, even when he was afraid and running from henchmen or the villain of the day. She would admit to being far stronger than average, especially for her size, but_ Tara _was even stronger than her, and_ Joss _was stronger than_ Tara_! And intelligence… Okay, as she'd told Shay, she_ had _been in the running for school valedictorian with Bonnie, but both of them were easily bested by Justine Flanner. And there again, Bonnie was neck and neck with her, and both Tara and Felix hadn't been far behind!

"Seriously, guys…" Kim whispered, "I know what you're saying, but…" she sighed and looked around, as if trying to find the words she needed, "If I_ am _so exceptional, why is it that I can name so many people off the top of my head that are better than I am at any given thing?"

"Because, Princess…" Shay murmured, "You're looking for, or at, _other_ exceptional people… And they tend to be exceptional in single - or just a couple - given fields, where _you_ are exceptional in _many_. Let's take Ronnie here…" She nodded at the blond, smirking slightly when he raised a confused eyebrow at her, "Who do you think's better at Tai Shing Pek Kwar: you or him?"

"Doy," Kim giggled slightly at using Shay's phrase, "Ronnie, obviously!"

"And who would be better at Taekwon Do, you or me?" Shay prodded again.

"Well…" Kim scrunched her face up, "You got to fourth dan, right?" Shay nodded again, and Kim sighed, "I'd have to say you, 'cause I had just finished my black belt test when Northern Mantis really drew me in."

"Who knows more martial arts than you do?" Shay continued, smirking when Kim scrunched her face up, "I know TKD, six styles of kung fu, savate, capoeira, Systema supplemented by some 'Combat Sambo', a little Krav Maga and a bit of Kenpo… I'm a master or equivalent in savate, Tiger Kung Fu, Systema and capoeira…" Shay raised an eyebrow, "You?"

"Um…" Kim thought about it, "I know sixteen forms of kung fu, TKD, Judo, some Kenop, a little aikido and hapkido, some Krav, a few other things I've picked up." She smiled briefly, adding with a flutter of frustration in her voice, "And cheer-fu…"

"And do you know any of them at master or equivalent?" Shay asked simply, "Or at least black belt level?"

"Um…" Kim frowned slightly, "Black belt or equivalent… Northern and Southern Mantis, Northern and Southern Crane, Wing Chun, obviously the cheer-fu since it's mine, Judo… I… Guess I have mastery in a few… Cheer-fu, for obvious reasons!" They all chuckled at the comment, then the red-head became a bit more serious as she pondered further. "Um… I also know the Northern Mantis, Southern Mantis, and Wing Chun at master, and my Northern Crane is really close, if not already there by now?"

"Yet you use_ all _the skills you have like any master I've ever seen, Kimmie…" Shay concluded softly, "That_ is _exceptional…"

"Maybe," Kim conceded, "But then, look at Dash Demond… He's almost as skilled as I am, knows_ more _martial arts than me, has actual_ mastery _in six martial arts, is a_ hell _of a lot stronger and almost as fast-…"

"He's also, what, thirty eight, forty?" Shay asked, making Kim wince slightly at the age difference, "And he was part of the old US Army 'Ultrasoldier' program, the one that allowed them to tweak people's physiologies to their max without steroids or genetic tampering?_ And _let's not forget just how… Driven he can be, hmmm?"

"Yeah, but I'm only eighteen and I've never had someone put me through a supersoldi-…" She saw Shay's eyes narrow slightly as she made the older woman's point, and hurriedly held her hands up, "Not sayin' that what I can do is below average or anything, Shay, honest! I just don't see it as being all_ that _exceptional…"

"Fine, Kimmie…" Shay sighed softly, shaking her head with wry amusement, "I'm not in the mood to argue, but don't think this is over!" She suddenly reached out with her free hand to caress Kim's cheek, before dropping it back to the countertop with an almost defeater air, "I'm going to keep at it 'til you admit it, KP…"

"I look forward to it…" Kim rolled her eyes, but the light chuckle at hearing Shay use Ron's nickname took any sting out of the action and phrase. With a sigh, she set her drink down and reached her now free reached out to place it over those of her loves, "Seriously, guys, thanks for cheering me up… Maybe I'm more than a 'basic, average girl'… But I'm not too sure I'm all that exceptional, 'kay? I guess, at most, I'd wouldn't go further than, 'basic, a bit above average girl', since I've met quite a few others like that're above average, too…"

"It's a good start…" Ron interjected when Shay opened her mouth to protest, and Kim suppressed a grin at her apparent victory, turning it into a sweet smile.

"You're lucky you're so cute, Princess…" Shay muttered, before leaning forward and giving the startled Kim a kiss on the lips, "How 'bout we go out to eat tonight, instead of eating in? There's a couple places over in the_ Leidseplein _neighborhood I wanna take you guys to if they're still around…"

"Sounds spankin'!" Kim enthused, and Ron nodded in somewhat disappointed but still happy agreement.

Rufus popped his head up from the couch, where he'd been flipping through the channels, and asked, "Cheese?"

"Of course, Bud!" Shay laughed in response, shaking her head, "Among… Other things." At Rufus' hopeful widening of the eyes, and Ron and Kim's confused cocking of their heads in the opposite direction, Shay merely smirked, "It_ is _Amsterdam, guys… And there's a coffeeshop I promised Rufus I'd take him to…"

"Oh…" Kim and Ron drew the word out and nodded in sudden realization, Kim flushing slightly at missing the obvious, and Ron grinning at his best non-human friend, before continuing, "Well, let's go!"

"Okay…" Shay agreed, before raising a finger and an eyebrow at once, "_After _you two make a couple of rather important calls, non?" The comment drew groans from the two teens, but they nodded in agreement, however reluctant it was…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Hey, babe…" the rather ugly Frenchman grunted at Betty as she slipped from one section of an alleyway to another. The woman that had been the head of GJ not two weeks before turned and favored the man with a gaze that had horrified hardened supercriminals. The man in question flinched, but his drug induced haze had him regaining his courage quickly enough, "Now, now, none of that! I may not like blondes, but you're more than attractive enough for my needs, my prett-… Oh…"

"Yes." Betty smirked dangerously as she flipped the safety of her recently acquired sidearm off and raised an eyebrow, "Oh. Leave, forget that you saw me, or I'll ventilate your almost empty skull." She couldn't help but admire just how… Deadly her voice sounded, despite being an octave higher than normal and infused with a smoky quality, as if suffering from years smoking damage. All thanks to a small pendant that sent small electric pulses into her throat at just the right time and strength to affect her speech, but nothing else._ I just_ love _some of the new tech Wade and Lipsky_

"Of course!" the man whispered and backed up, carefully walking from the end of the alleyway Betty occupied and back out onto the street without a backwards glance.

"Idiot…" Betty grimaced, shaking her head slightly as she put the gun back on safe._ No need to get_ too _aggressive…_ She shook her head again and reached into the hidden left front pocket of her tight fitting, black catsuit style uniform. She fingered the small bottle there, then shook her head negatively, slipping back to English as she whispered, "No, I need sleep when this is done… Now where did that… Ah, here we go…"

She watched the man she'd been following through Toulouse, France for the last five hours. She'd tried to use a laptop to access the GJ network, but her passwords had been changed. She'd tried to call and use a backdoor system to get ahold of Will, from several land line phones and two cell phones she'd lifted from the WWEE men who had come into the place she'd been held, but that hadn't worked either. Nonetheless, she had kept the phones, wrapped in aluminum foil and turned off so they couldn't be traced. Just in case, of course.

What she wore was just in case, as well. Covering her short, auburn hair was a shoulder length blonde wig that had been designed by one Wade Load. In addition to that were one of GJ's most closely guarded secrets: build up cream and makeup. The cream was a marvel of modern science, able to foam up or be spread thinner than paper, or long and thin like hair. It could change one's facial structure enough to fool even the most advanced facial recognition hardware and software. It was also perfect for modifying skintone, even allowing one to look like a junkie with a habit of digging at their own skin. It was also filled with nanotech to change color, including subsurface photon scattering so it_ looked _real!

Physically, she had slightly more prominent brows, her cheeks were ever so slightly larger, and her nose had the noticeable crook of a woman whose nose had been broken many times. She also wore a pair of dark, wraparound sunglasses that, contrary to their appearance, made the late dusk seem like it was mid-day. Another creation of Wade's, modified by Dr. Lipsky for color correction if there was enough light about, they gave her a distinct advantage in dark situations. As well, built in flare compensation kept her from being blinded if someone realized why she had such an advantage.

Those were the most important things she'd gotten when she'd been forced to assume one of her backup identities. There was also the apartment in the very city she was in, and yet another cell phone, one she hadn't used at all. After all, this particular identity was one that only four people in the world knew about; herself of course, then Gerard, Will Du and Wade Load. She was hoping that, after she got the agent in her clutches, she'd be able to get to Wade or Will without resorting to using the identity's cell; no need to set off more alarms than she needed to!

The man she had followed, a GJ agent named Gregor Novikov, was on WWEE's payroll and her best bet to get to Will._ If I can get his GJ comm. unit… And_ if _I can do so without alerting anyone… And_ if _I can get ahold of Will without my doppelganger or anyone else potentially compromised around… And_ if _I-…_ She barely bit off a sigh._ Too many goddamn 'ifs'!_

With a shake of her head, she dismissed the cloying worries. She'd been a field agent for several years, and had done hero work in the vein of Kim Possible well before that with her old partner… Though admittedly in a much more low key, far more covert fashion. She took another moment to try and shake off the sleep deprivation, before moving forward.

Slipping behind the man, she listened in on his broken French as he gave a password to the man behind a steel fire door with a speakeasy like window gate. The man behind the window nodded and the sound of perhaps a dozen heavy locking cylinders slamming open. The man winced nervously and glanced around before walking in. Just as the big man at the door looked back to double check on Gregor, Betty struck.

In college, Betty Director had been a world class sprinter. In fact, she'd been a few competitions from trying out for the Olympics when she'd been contacted by Global Justice… And the rest had been history… Except for one of a few little known facts: she had kept up with her weight training, sprinting, and the martial arts she'd learned in GJ. The big man at the door was just turning towards the sound of feet slamming into pavement when the stout form of Betty slammed into him.

Her hand, holding the pistol in an easy, familiar grip, slammed into his head just above and behind the ear. He dropped like a sack of potatoes, and the other door guard - a smaller, more wiry man than his partner, who had been out of Betty's line of sight - following as he made the mistake of grabbing Betty's shoulder. Without looking, she reached up and wrapped her fingers around his hand between the thumb and index finger's first knuckle. Placing her thumb just below his ring finger's first knuckle, she twisted his hand about her thumb, easily breaking his wrist and drawing a strangled shout from him. That shout was silenced an instant later by an elbow to his nose, which sent him into blissful unconsciousness.

She glanced around the small safehouse. It was essentially a studio apartment with silkscreen walls closing off the bathroom and bedroom areas, and a real wall where she suspected the water lines came in at the back of what amounted to a foyer. In the foyer area was a small writing desk, a coatrack and a very panicked Gregor Novikov.

Betty smirked, knowing he couldn't recognize her due to her disguise of shoulder length blonde hair and sunglasses. "Who are you?" Gregor snapped, his thick Russian accent coming out more noticeably, "I do not suggest causing me problems, I am-…"

"Gregor Novikov, GJ field agent services agent, detective division, agent third class…" Betty smirked, hoping she was right about the location. If she was, that should be all the WWEE agents here, so she took a chance, "Interesting that a GJ agent's seeking WWEE safehouse protection, non?"

"So wha-…" Gregor started, but obviously realized his mistake the way his face fell, "You're GJ…"

"Not…" Betty said, slamming the door shut and surging forward, slamming the man against the wall next to the writing desk. An instant later, before he could bring his watch to bear upon her, she drove an upwards driving fist into his gut, stunning his diaphragm. When his arms dropped to his side to try and catch his breath, she made sure he saw the firearm in her hand before driving it uncomfortably up under and behind the angle of his jaw, "Quite… The watch, ditch it."

"R-right…" Gregor stammered as his breath returned, then carefully lifted his hands over his head, removing the device and tossing it in a seemingly careless manner over towards the small room's kitchenette. "Wh-what do you want?"

"You." Betty replied, bringing up a short, uppercut elbow to the point of his chin. The man fell in a heap, and she surveyed the room. She noticed that his watch had settled down next to the kitchenette's fridge. Something in the back of her mind was trying to alert her to… Something… But her sleep deprivation allowed her to shrug the warning off. She quickly moved to grab it, not noticing the flashing LED in the corner of the room.

"Let's see what else is here, shall we?" she murmured, stalking back over to the unconscious man. She blinked when she realized she'd made a rookie mistake: he was unbound, and coming back around. She shifted her firearm to her left hand and quickly grabbed a set of zip tie style hog-tie restraints and went to work before he could fully regain consciousness. As soon as he was tied, she stood and grabbed the towel hanging from the refrigerator's handle and walked back over, tieing a big knot in the middle and using the improvised ball gag to silence him, just as he was beginning to speak, "Ah-ah, no talking, Agent Novikov…"

"Hmmmph!" he muttered, the nasty taste of his ball gag registering and making him retch.

"Don't vomit, Agent Novikov…" Betty chuckled, "I might not remove that gag without knocking you out first." She held her pistol up for reference, and the man shuddered slightly, nodding while swallowing his bile back down. She squatted down and cocked her head, her eyes questioning as she spoke, "Now, Agent Novikov, we'll play a game. It's called 'Truth or ouch'… I've heard you're fond of that particular game?"

The man looked as if he were about to shake his head, but instead sighed and nodded. "Good! So, tell me, Agent… Were you running to WWEE because you betrayed some of your fellow agents?" A quick shake of the head, "Or perhaps because of orders from the top?" A hesitation, and a dull eyed nod earned him a snicker from Betty. "Straight from the desk of one Dr. Elizabeth Director, hmmm?"

The man began to panic and nod, and Betty raised an eyebrow._ Something's… Wrong with this picture… _Pursing her lips, she held the man's watch in front of him, in such a way as to let him know she knew how to use it, "Now, tell me, if I drop your gag to explain why you panicked, are you going to yell and force me to play the 'Ouch' part of the game with you?" He shook his head, and she rolled the gag up under his nose.

The sound he made told her the movement was, as she'd intended, been painful, but he did keep his word, "She knows all of GJ's moles, and called us… And told us to go back home. All of us that worked had notices from Gemini to do the same by the end of our shifts…"

"Ah, so you're a double agent!" Betty smiled, "What's your designation?"

"Alpha Seven." Gregor muttered, disgusted with himself. Then he glanced up behind her, to where Betty knew there was a clock, "And whoever you are, you're screwed."

"Not likely." Betty smirked and discharged his taser into him. She quickly rifled through his belongings, finding one of the things she'd hoped to: a GJ issue PDA with the most current codes… And as she looked through it, the next code jump._ Probably kept himself there long enough to take it back to WWEE…_ she realized, shaking her head in amazement at what was happening 'back home'.

The back and front door blowing off of their hinges startled her for perhaps a quarter second. She was already in motion as the writing desk literally exploded from the volume of fire pumped into it. She glanced back briefly to see that most of it was plasma balls, but there were pockmarks from the older, but just as deadly, bullets. "Secure yir firearms, y'daft gets!" the apparent leader screamed in a heavy Scottish accent from the back door, "Stoon only, y'goat'it?" Betty smirked, knowing she now had the advantage.

She whipped her sidearm back into her dominant hand and came up to an isosceles stance, her off hand placing itself perfectly as she flipped the safety back off as she raised it into position. Even as she took aim, she took in their outfits: full WWEE assault gear, quite similar, if bulkier, than GJ's own gear. She knew that the most they would likely suffer was a few bruises, unless she were_ just _lucky enough to get through one of the rare seams at_ just _the right angle, but it'd throw them into confusion… Hopefully.

She squeezed off four shots in incredibly rapid succession, then rushed forwards as one of the men she'd struck stumbled back into his brethren, dropping his firearm in the process. She ducked in and across the group, snatching the falling weapon - a WWEE modified DeMenz Gruppe Stunball gun - and hoped her movement did half of her work for her.

She was partially successful. Several balls of plasma, the purple of heavy stun, lanced out and into the group. Three of the group seemed to be equipped with anti-stun suits, but five of them dropped, screaming in pain as their muscles contracted in ways they weren't meant to. She dashed into the screened off sleeping area and dove over the bed, crouching down long enough to lift it up on its side. It would give her some protection from the stunballs, at least, and if she were right, the bolt hole… Was there! But it was locked with a two inch thick bar and several thick padlocks.

"Hey, lassie," the leader called out, "step outta there so we kin talk t'ya… Y'have soam skills, an' tha WWEE cauld use ya, I'm sure!" Betty ignored him, not wanting any part of it._ Besides, if I can just get the cover off of the amplif-…_ She barely repressed a snort and began to busily fiddle with some of the internal electronics of the stunball gun. They were based on the first generation prototypes, which hadn't been put in general service, so if she switched a few wires… Betty smiled evilly as the wires she wanted were still not only in place, but quite easily accessible._ Yep! _she crowed internally,_ Gemini hasn't changed a thing!_

"I think not, Alpha Fifteen!" Gregor called groggily, having obviously been woken up and freed, "That bitch knows who I am, she's probably with GJ!" Betty snorted in amusement, not caring if they heard this time, too busy stripping the insulation back and crossing the wires she'd found.

"Too bad…" Alpha Fifteen drawled, "Loight 'er up!"

Just as two men came around the end of the mattress, a high pitched whine came from her stunball gun, the only warning that the protection diodes connected to the twenty thousand farad ultracapacitor power supply were in the process of dying. Just the wrong jostle at the wrong time, and the crossed wires would feed the inverted current of the capacitor into itself… Qutie explosively. She laughed as the men's faces, barely visible through their visors, paled and one of them looked like he was about to piss himself. "I'd let me go, if I were you boys!" she called, holding up the gun, "These two know what that means, ask them if you're uncertain…"

"Shit!" Alpha Fifteen grated, "Back op, boys! An' don' touch 'er or jostle th' gun!"

"That's right…" Betty cooed as she walked out from behind the mattress, her stride calm, "Back up…"

"You're dead, woman!" Gregor hissed, a cold fire burning in his eyes, "I'll find you and then…"

"You'll die if you follow me." Betty assured them coldly, "Any of yo-oof!"

Betty was more than a little worried as she was tackled from behind by a WWEE agent. She felt the stunball gun falling from her grip, so she shoved it forwards, hoping it had enough impetus to reach one of the far walls before detonating. She felt another set of hands join the one around her waist, these around her shoulders, and began to thrash and throw her weight around as much as she could.

"Foire in tha 'ole!" Alpha Fifteen screamed, diving forwards and into Betty and the two men holding her, driving the three of them out the front door, Gregor and five others a half step behind them. An instant after they were out, the gun struck the back wall of the foyer. Its power supply exploded, sending shrapnel from the gun's body and an explosion of energy throughout the building. The force was enough that Gregor and the five that piled out after him were scattered about the area in front of the doorway in a disorganized heap.

Betty was the first to react between herself, Alpha Fifteen and the other two men behind her. As she felt the first of the men behind her trip up in the cluttered alleyway with the explosion, she sprang into action. She tossed her balance back to help his fellow fall as well as give her the space to place her feet under Alpha Fifteen. She also managed to free one of her arms from the hench behind her and grabbed onto Alpha Fifteen's suit by the raised portion of armor just below his face mask.

As she and the two holding her landed, she shoved off with her legs, driving Alpha Fifteen into the wall behind her. He struck head first, and despite the armor, fell to the ground in an unconscious heap. She immediately followed through with her roll, spinning around her center of gravity to drive a vicious knee into the first of the two men to grab her. He wasn't knocked unconscious, but he was made quite insensate.

The second man to grab her was forced to deal with his fellow, who was larger and at that moment dead weight, and was unable to stop Betty from grabbing a fallen weapon, another stunball gun, and dashing towards the corner where she'd been accosted earlier. As soon as she was out of their line of sight, she bunched her legs under her and shoved off, losing very little of her forward momentum as she launched herself into a huge leap.

The leap lead her right foot to a slight, decorative ledge of bricks that she crouched into with that foot, before turning her forward momentum into a horizontal and slightly upwards leap to what appeared to be a solidly attached pipe in the alleyway wall opposite her. This time she allowed her formerly forward momentum to die completely and let both of her legs fall into a crouch. The balls of her feet rested on top of the pipe and her shins were parallel to the wall. While the majority of her body's mass was behind her heels, her balance was such that she could have held onto the position with one or two fingers of one hand holding onto the cracks between the bricks of the building.

She didn't stay put long enough for that to be necessary, however. Her legs were powerful enough that she had a seventy seven centimeter vertical leap with her legs extended… And nearly one hundred and fifty four centimeters if she leapt to a crouched position. There was a line of seemingly decorative bricks along this wall, as well, but these were about a meter below the roof's edge, which was just over two meters above her. She could_ just _reach the line of bricks with her vertical leap to crouch, and use the instant of balance and purchase there to grab the roof and pull herself up.

Even though she was over forty six years old, most people thought she was Shego's age of twenty-eight, or even younger. She smirked, wondering how many people would react to knowing she was actually older than Durant? That age, however, gave her experience, especially in terms of martial arts and things like what she was doing now: free running, or parkour as it was more commonly called after the late nineties.

She had been doing crazy things like she was at that moment since she had been a little girl of six years old. She knew that the move she planned was risky, but not nearly as much to someone of her experience as to many others. She leapt, using her body's natural mechanics and physics to keep her close to the wall, yet with enough room for her bosom and, more importantly for the maneuver, her knees to slide up and into position. As soon as her knees were up to her shoulders, she inched her toes forward and down, finding the minute purchase on the bricks, before shoving down with her feet. The move gave her just enough impetus to grab onto the roof's edge.

Moving quickly and using what little momentum she had left, she shoved downwards with her palms flat atop the roof's edge. She felt her body sailing up, and in a move that would make an Olympic gymnast proud, she swung her legs up and around, twisting into a flair that landed her behind the low roof just before the first of her pursuers rounded the corner.

"Find her and kill her before she gets away!" Gregor growled angrily, and Betty carefully looked over the edge of the roof, hoping none of them thought three dimensionally. The auburn haired woman smirked as she noticed that only Gregor had bothered to look up, and his gaze was already well past her position.

_Time to even the odds with these idiots a bit…_ she thought with a smirk, just as she heard a subdued clinking from the emergency railing at the back of the building._ Okay, maybe not as idiotic as I thought… _She thought back to what she'd seen a moment earlier when running down the alleyway, and knew that they would end up making some noise when they started coming over the roof's edge, due to how far from the stairwell it was. Nonetheless, she had to make this quick.

Glancing down, she had to force herself not to laugh; the suits of all the men below her were protected from tasers - and by extension, stunballs - except for a small section at the neck. From the front, back and sides, at the same level of the wearer, that area was mostly protected by the suits' design. However, from the top, it was a relatively large area to strike, especially considering how fast the WWEE modified stunball guns could fire!

Switching the selector to full auto mode and taking aim at Gregor, she unleashed a burst of three stunballs at the spot. As the balls impacted, she was already moving to her next target, with a four shot burst, then the next. She'd just fired upon a fourth man when that man and the fifth member began returning fire. She hit the fourth man and sent a stream of automatic fire at the fifth as she crabwalked down the roof a bit. The fourth man's shots went wide, but the fifth man, armed with a so called old fashioned firearm, managed to hit her upper arm, even as several stunballs struck him, one managing to find the unprotected crevice between his neck and head.

She was imminently thankful that Wade had managed to get this suit to her ID secretly, as it was made of the same fabric that Kim, Ron and Shego's uniforms were made from. Nonetheless, she felt a searing fire of the bullet as the it struck and slid along the fabric from her biceps to her deltoid, before flying off in some random direction.

"Sonuvabitch!" Betty hissed, thankful that the bullet hadn't struck between the biceps and triceps. If it had, she was quite certain it would have broken her humerus. As it was, she knew she'd have a long surface bruise on her arm, and probably another one on the bone where the bullet had first struck. There was a beeping from the stunball gun, and she glanced down, cursing to herself as she did so._ Shit, just what I needed, _she grimaced as she saw two sets of hands pulling bodies up over the rear lip of the building,_ Down to three shots, injured and suffering sleep deprivations, and their cavalry just got here…_

And the cavalry was impressive indeed, and Betty studied them as they reached back without moving their eyes from her to assist their comrades. The men were wearing standard WWEE jumpsuits, obviously backup in case the assault team failed. The were also a bit different from the norm, in that the first two were smaller men than Gemini normally employed, the tallest between the two barely topping her one hundred and seventy one centimeters. The two they were assisting were pretty much standard, as far as size, but the one thing Betty noticed is how they moved.

They seemed much more… Knowledgeable than the norm as they all settled on the roof. The first two slipped into what Betty knew to be Krav Maga stances, their larger compatriots getting into general purposes stances. She slipped the selector switch back to semi-auto and raised the rifle, snapping off her last three shots, starting with the smaller one.

Her first shot struck home, right in the smaller one's breadbasket. He fell back with a strangled scream, struggling for breath even as he fell into unconsciousness, his diaphragm struggling to listen to his brain. The second shot went wide as the other small man dodged left and the smaller of the two larger opponents literally leapt over the shot and into a forward roll. The third shot was a glancing one to the bigger brawler, hitting his left knee and dropping him down as his leg tried to recover from the shock.

"Two outta three ain't bad…" Betty muttered as she took a quarter second to determine what she should do. With no clear idea striking her, she hefted and tossed the now useless weapon at the man on the ground, he managed to move his head out of the way of the gun's butt, despite his pain, and Betty sighed as the gun flew up and over the side of the building._ Should've kept it, dammit! _she thought with a sinking sensation in her gut.

"We got orders t' kill dis bitch…" the one she'd just tried to hit grunted, trying to massage his leg into working. Betty, knowing that her life was in the balance, thought about taking care of the two downed opponents, but the apparent skill of the two still standing thought better of it.

Then she had no more time for thought. The second smaller man came at her with a low roundhouse kick towards her knee. She countered by lifting her leg, taking the the blow to her intentionally loose limbed shin, countering him by driving an elbow towards his right temple, following her elbow around her center of gravity. He leaned his head back, and was about to strike with a punch when he realized that the elbow had been a feint.

Betty completed the spin started with her elbow strike and swept the man's legs out from under him. Before she could capitalize, however, she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She dove forward without thinking, rolling over her left shoulder and maneuvering herself to come up with her right leg forward in a low stance. She saw the man coming at her again, his hands seeming to flail as he sent chops, slaps, and punches at her face, shoulders and throat. As uncoordinated as it would seem to an outside observer, Betty knew that any of those strikes could be quite painful.

She backed up and to her left, to keep herself away from both the swept man, who was picking himself back up, and her other two downed enemies. Betty knew that, for some reason, the moves the man was throwing were familiar, but couldn't_ quite _place them. To give herself some time to think, she threw a few punches and a few kicks his way. Her third kick, one directed at his hip, lead her to a state of startled lassitude when he moved with amazing speed to grab her ankle. He twisted and began to fall, his legs moving in an attempt to scissor around her extended one.

The manner of the movement finally pierced the mild fog in her mind._ Systema? _she asked herself as she moved to counter his scissor, angry that she hadn't noticed it earlier,_ Dammit, since when does Gemini get competent lackeys? _She pulled her leg in towards herself, and due to the man's larger size and the force he'd used to get himself into position, it caused her to move towards him. She jumped at the same time, bringing her leg up and driving it into his elbow, hoping to dislodge one of the arms holding her ankles.

She was successful, and managed to drive the man back a few paces. She dropped into a forward roll away from the big man, her eyes darting about to find her other opponent. She found him just as he delivered a vicious sidekick into her gut, knocking the wind from her. She grabbed onto the offending limb, even as her abdominal muscles tried to force air back into her lungs, then drove a palm strike into the side of his knee. There was a satisfying pop as his humerus dislocated from its proper place atop the meniscus, drawing an agonized scream from the man…

A scream cut short as Betty pulled him towards her with his broken limb and wrapped her left arm around his neck in a wrestling-like clothsline maneuver. She stepped forward with her right leg and drove her left hip into his, then dropped towards her knees, at the same pressing her right palm into the back of his head. When she felt his weight shift, indicating his legs were off the ground, and waited until her right leg were just below parallel. She stood explosively and twisted away from the man, and this time, the sound the emanated from him was not a pop, but the crunch of cartilage and bone grinding as his windpipe was crushed and his neck snapped cleanly.

"Lewandowski!" the big man roared in a Russian accent, confirming Betty's thoughts about his combat style. She used the distraction to spin and launch herself forward, driving a knee towards his unprotected groin. The man proved himself to be quite capable, however, as he dodged to her right, snapping a sidekick towards her short ribs. Betty brought her elbow down to protect her midsection and spun to her left, intent on bringing a leg up in a hook kick towards his face.

She almost missed the flash of light in the dim twilight, but it was enough for her to know she had to move, and move quickly. The man she'd struck in the leg was coming at her with a knife, and seemed quite knowledgeable in its use. She brought her left hand across and down towards the blade, and almost crowed aloud when her hand encountered a wrist. Clamping down, she twisted with her thumb on the inside point of his wrist, turning the blade towards the man.

She then startled the man by forcing his arm to extend downwards, something that had startled many people she had known. Betty Director, similarly to her brother, was classified by GJ as an 'extranorm'. She had strength and reflexes that were far beyond what both her age and her stature should allow; unlike her brother, it wasn't from cybernetics, but from a combination of great natural genetics, training… And being a part of a supersoldier program when she'd joined the ranks of GJ.

Other than herself, five people in the world knew she'd been the only candidate to survive the program. She had stamina to rival Kim Possible or Shego, and her strength would slot in almost directly between the two women. Her reflexes, always impressive, had become equal to Shego's, which meant that, to her knowledge, only a few people in the world were faster. The other benefit was the fact that, due to the improvements in her workings the program had given her, her body's aging had slowed to a literal crawl. She would look like she was twenty four well into her high one hundreds, possibly reaching as high as two hundred and twenty years, before looking like she was in her mid thirties. Based on tests, she wouldn't die of old age until well into her fourth century of life, if not her fifth.

All of this flashed through her mind, almost clouding her grasp of the situation. This was, of course, one of the unfortunate drawbacks of the program. She could, in the middle of a fight, get lost in the details of whatever she had thought about that wasn't part of the fight. Even outside of battles, she would sometimes get lost in the minutiae of a scheme she was trying to figure out, as well. While normally it was a good thing for keeping ahead of villains, it was one of the reasons why Drakken had almost succeeded with his Li'l Diablo plan. Though she had gone through training to avoid it, even in fights, it would still crop up. Especially when she'd been sleep deprived, such as her state of being at the moment.

There were other drawbacks, as well, aside from the obvious of outliving everyone she knew and cared for. A couple of the more apparent drawbacks, such as a severely reduced need for sleep and the fact that she could never get pregnant, many would consider a boon. She still had her ovaries, and could use a surrogate to have children, but that was something a woman in her position could not undertake lightly. She was also prone to get into any fighting she did just a_ bit _too much. She had a tendency take even friendly sparring too seriously, and when it came to training? She had a reputation among those that had been her trainees, since she had given severe beatdowns to several agents without meaning to. The fact that she enjoyed fighting, a_ lot_, and that her moral compass could shut down when she was fighting was definitely a problem at times.

Fortunately, in this case at least, wasn't exactly a disadvantage. She growled as she got her opponent's arm to full extension, then shoved the blade backwards with her hip. With the man's arm in the position it had been in, it was driven into his right thigh, the point barely missing the femur. She felt his muscles tense, as if in preparation of withdrawing the blade; she let him, but just as he began to pull it away, she kicked his leg out to the right.

An almost literal fountain of arterial blood spurted from his leg and torn uniform as he severed his own femoral artery. Betty jumped and kicked backwards, driving the man back to trip over the first of the four men she'd struck with a stunball, who was just coming around. She paid for her slight grandstanding as the systema expert drove forward and delivered a vicious right hook to her chin. The blow literally lifted her off her feet and knocked her onto her back.

"You die now, bitch!" the man screamed, diving to take a mounted position on her chest. Betty, despite the ringing in her ears and the dizziness that accompanied the blow, was aware enough to counter his action. Lifting her feet at the last possible instant, she let him power himself into her legs, then rolled with his momentum and shoved upwards. The man growled in annoyance, then screamed as he realized how close to the edge of the roof they were. His scream ended with a sickening crunch a little over a second later.

A pained moan indicated the last living member of the foursome was finally starting to pull himself together. Betty kipped into a standing position, then walked over to the man. "We'll find you and kill you…" he managed to mutter as she knelt down, one foot on his outstretched arm and her knee in his chest.

He tried feebly to move out from underneath her, drawing a smile from Betty. She shook her head and murmured, "Not likely…" before slamming a palm heel strike into his forehead. The blow forced his head back into the roof, knocking him unconscious once again. Pursing her lips, she reached out and yanked the balaklava like head covering. "I'll be damned…" She cursed, realizing she knew the man.

"Just how many of you assholes has Gemini snuck into my organization?"

She felt rage bubbling furiously within her, yet another potential problem with what had been done to her. Certain types of anger, such as the righteous, indignant anger she felt at that moment, could run away like a nuclear reactor heading for a meltdown. As she gazed at the traitor below her, she felt a powerful desire to lash out at him, to beat him until he was bloody… And perhaps beyond that. Only her supremely powerful will kept her from doing that, and allowed her to walk to the roof entrance to the building. She wanted to laugh as she saw the unlocked roof hatch, but restrained herself. There was, after all, no need to make people think a supervillainess was on the loose, after all!

Carefully opening the heavy, steel hatch, she eased herself onto the ladder and made her way down, carefully closing the hatch behind her._ Now, _she thought, shoving all of her thoughts of revenge into a small, tight box in her head,_ To get back to my safehouse, call Will, and get things _fixed_, dammit!_

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Hey, Shay?" Kim asked as the four heroes made their way along the sidewalk from the small, street vendor of some of the most delicious Greek food Kim had ever had. The older woman turned, immensely happy that she'd chosen right for the three of her friends; she'd started them out with some almost cliché Dutch fair, savory _pannekoeken_. They'd shared one of the large, thin pancakes, measuring as large as some of the pizzas Kim and Ron had eaten in Middleton, that had been topped with a mixture of bacon, cheese and peppers, enjoying it thoroughly.

Then they'd moved on to another stall, the former thief almost squealing she'd been so happy to see Andreas Frangopolis still running his little greek food stall. She'd immediately pulled the teen duo over to his stall, much to their eventual delight. She'd suggested they start with a _pikilia_, or variety platter. The platter had included deep fried cod and garlic sauce, fried anchovies,_ gigandes tiganiti_ - a dish that had weirded Ron out when he discovered it was a battered, deep fried giant white bean - and some feta stuffed olives. They'd all ordered gyros, pita wrapped meat and vegetables, and the sounds they'd all made had drawn a few raised eyebrows from fellow customers… Until they'd tried them, of course.

Now they were on their way to a snack stall that the security consultant hoped was still there. More Greek, since she was feeling a strong vibe for that particular cuisine, so she hoped that wasn't what Kim's question was about. Turning back, she smiled and cocked an eyebrow, "Yeah, Princess?"

"What'd ya plan on showing us tomorrow before Ron's called on the big Y's work?" The four of them chuckled at Kim's obtuse reference to Yamanouchi, though Ron did reach over to squeeze her hand in thanks for it.

"Oh…" The older woman sighed and thought for a moment, "I figured we'd hit some of the big museums? I'd like Ron to at least see the_ Stedelijk _Museum Amsterdam and the_ Rijksmuseum _Amsterdam…" Kim cocked her head slightly, earning a shrug from the former thief, "Well, they're kinda less dry than, say, the Van Gogh or such… And I figured if everything was done tonight or tomorrow evening, we'd all go to the Anne Frank Museum on Wednesday…"

"That…" Ron started, staring at her with wide, surprised eyes. After a moment of staring, he closed his eyes and shook his head as if a horse chasing off a fly, before opening his eyes and giving his fiancée's girlfriend a soft smile, "That'd be awesome, Shay. Thanks."

"No problem, Sport." She smiled back at him, before turning and pausing. The pause was barely there, an infinitesimal tensing of her body before she continued on down the crowded sidewalk, but all three of her friends noticed.

"What's up, Shay?" Kim asked as casually as she could, and only long familiarity with her former enemy helped the pale woman detect the tension in her tone.

"Saw someone I knew from my old job…" she answered just as casually, before shrugging and allowing herself to relax, "Probably just out here getting something to eat is all."

Kim relaxed slightly herself, shaking a finger at her lover, "You had me worried, Shay!"

"You 'n' me both, Princess." the former thief replied with a chuckle, "Anyway, the place I'm lookin' for still looks to be open, and Theresa's still running it!"

The stall the pale woman pointed at was one of the more ornate than most of those surrounding it, while still looking easy enough to tear down. The woman behind the counter seemed to be quite genial and was quite pretty despite being quite overweight. She had honey blonde hair in tight, natural looking curls, piercing silver eyes, a large but oddly attractive nose, a small, pert mouth and high cheekbones. She was obviously one of those women whose inner beauty shone through despite her physical appearance, especially with the smile that lit her face up when the foursome came into view through the crowds.

"Greenie!" the woman called out, trundling around the counter and the rather muscular, attractive man standing beside her. When she continued, her thick, Greek accented soprano all but rang out across the market, "When did you get back in Amsterdam?"

"Not too long ago, Theresa." the security consultant chuckled, though there was a troubled aspect to her gaze at the manner in which Theresa had mentioned her being in town. Nonetheless, she still accepted the almost bone crushing hug from the woman easily, smiling fondly at the portly woman, "And let me introdu-…"

"Team Possible?" Theresa blinked and pulled back from the pale woman to look at the three. Then her smile, seemingly against all the laws of physics, expanded, "Well I'll be damned! What brings them along with you?"

"Oh, nothing much." Kim said, walking up beside her lover to lean into her side, "Just some realizations on our part…" She glanced up at the pale woman and winked, "Right, Shay?"

"Kimmie…" Shay blushed deeply, looking everywhere but her red-headed lover and her old friend, Theresa.

"Oh-ho?" Theresa asked, glancing between Kim and Ron, "So, are you two…"

"Still together." Ron supplied easily, putting an arm around Kim's right shoulder and placing a hand easily on Shay's left shoulder, "Working on more, but I'm perfectly fine with how things are. And, no offense, but why d'you look so familiar?"

"Probably 'cause her older brother's name is Midas." Shay grumbled, still embarrassed by Kim's easy affection and Theresa's scrutiny.

"Oh, you're right!" Ron exclaimed, then glanced over at the man in the stall, "And I guess that guy's family, too?"

"Yes!" Theresa nodded enthusiastically, glancing back, "That's Hector, our youngest brother. He's here in Amsterdam making some money before going over to England to become a chiropractic doctor." The pride in her voice was completely unfeigned, and Shay could see Ron, Kim and even Rufus taking an immediate liking to her.

_Which could be a good thing, 'cause I notice more of my old 'friends' about…_ She caught Theresa's eyes and cocked her head slightly, making sure to move her eyes subtly in the direction of one of her old work contacts. Theresa nodded faintly, then turned to her little brother with a huge smile before launching into such rapid fire Greek that even Shay, who had a good deal of experience understanding the language, could barely follow. But still, she was surprised at what she heard._ So, old man Portelli's trying to get out of the biz and wants me around to help smooth things over, huh?_ the pale woman barely restrained her desire to purse her lips, _And he'll make sure all of my old debts are paid off…_

Theresa's younger brother let out a theatrical sigh, as if expecting this, and answered in English for Ron and Kim's benefit, "Sister, I don't think we need anything special for your friend here…"

Theresa acted slightly incensed, but Shay caught on to what was happening when she saw a look that mingled annoyance and relief on her younger brother's face. She'd met all three of the Rigas siblings early on in her thieving career. It had been, in truth, Theresa that had gotten her into the line of work, what with her connections to several well known underworld types that made Amsterdam their home. Much to her youngest brother's eternal worry, so if old man Portelli was getting out…_ She must be getting out too, if Hector's so relieved…_

"Hey, he's got a point, Theresa!" Shay nodded as if in agreement, not quite catching the odd look Ron was giving her, "No need to go all out…"

"But…" Theresa started, only to be interrupted by a firm look and a raised finger from Shay.

"Nothing special, unless it's a daily special." the pale woman intoned in a familiarly serious fashion, then softened her gaze, "But I'll tell ya what… Is that one shop I like still open? The one just off the main street?"

"Huh?" Theresa blinked, then what Shay was getting at sunk in, "Oh, yeah, it's still open, if you meant Hendrick's flow-…"

"Yes!" Shay interrupted, hoping the flustered appearance she knew she sported looked from embarrassment, not worry about what Theresa had told her, "I was hoping to pick something up there… Um, I'll give him a nice tip if ya keep things normal, 'kay?" Theresa sighed as if being put upon, and Shay rolled her eyes with a chuckle, "Just get my usual ready, and I'll be right back."

Hector, looking again annoyed, began to speak in rapid fire Greek to Theresa, who managed to look somewhat chagrined. She shrugged and began speaking back at him, neither of them noticing Ron listening in on their conversation with rapidly expanding understanding. Shay, however, did. _I hope you don't catch on too quick, __Sport__… _she thought,_ I _really_ don't want you two involved in this shit…_

"What's up, Shay?" Kim's sudden question startled Shay, making her jump. When she glanced back, it was obvious the red-head was wondering at the byplay between the three, and Shay's sudden nervousness.

"Er, not much, Princess, just…" Kim began to push out her lower lip, and Shay reached out, closing her hand over her lover's mouth, her face taking on an annoyed air, "No puppy dog pout, Princess! I'm just wanting to get something before a shop closes, 'kay? I'll be_ right _back!"

"Oh, okay." Kim smiled, turning back to the menu, grabbing Ron's arm and turning him towards the board, "I'm_ so _going to have to put in an extra workout after this…"

"I'm sure your boy won't mind, Cupcake." Shay said quietly before slipping off.

Kim turned around and blew a raspberry after her, and Shay couldn't help but see the narrow eyed gaze of Ron following after her, feeling his eyes upon her for a long moment after she turned around. She fought the urge to look back at him, knowing without a doubt that the normally goofy blond was in 'trained ninja mode', and understood, at least in part, what she was doing._ I hope he waits 'til Kimmie's occupied before asking me about it…_ the former thief worried as she was swallowed by the crowd,_ I don't want either of them in this mess, but _especially_ not her…_

She sighed as the flower shop came into view, and an idea formed in her head, one that drew a smirk to her features._ Maybe bringing back a bouquet will distract her enough for that chat with Ron? _She smiled at the idea, hoping she was right. Because, if she wasn't, she'd have to do something quite drastic to keep Kim out of it. Something that could be quite harmful for their budding relationship…

**Author's Notes**

Seems like a slow chapter when it comes to Kim, Ron and Shego, but important. It does seem that Kim takes her, "…regular, average girl…" side a bit seriously, doesn't it? To the point she doesn't seem to be able to accept that she's truly an extraordinary woman. Then again, for Kim, sometimes, it takes a field tactical nuke to change her opinion on something she considers such a fundamental part of herself, non? But, as always, growing up is always hard…

And then we have… Betty? Kicking ass, taking names and, as is sometimes the case for people in her line of work, taking lives. Not something she wants to take likely, obviously, but she did seem to shrug it off easier than Ron does.

And now, the plot thickens slightly… Ron's being called out for a 'simple' job for Yamanouchi, and Shay seems to have been sucked back into her old line of work… It seems to be for a good cause, but is that the case? Or is she walking into a trap? Only time will tell...

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work. And remember: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review. Although most authors love good criticism, they tend to appreciate it, even if it's just to say, "Great chapter! Keep up the good work!"


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Foreword**

Hey there, everyone. Sorry for the extra long delay, and while I have no real excuse for it, I do have a reason: it was due to a combination of real life kickin' me in the junk, and a massive bout of depression. A few years back, my mother passed from complications with COPD, and a year to the week later, my sister-in-law died of breast cancer. This year it hit me… Really hard. Harder than it has since the very events themselves. And I've been doin' a_ lot _of needed house and automotive repairs (whoever designed the mounting system for the front wheel hub assembly in the 2002-2010 model year Ford Explorer is a cruel, cruel person…).

That aside, things should be workin' out a lot better now, as far as writing goes, so, without further ado, on to the review replies and the fic!

Jimmy1201: it might be that's the case… As to Betty, well, not quite a full on superhero… Superspy, on the other hand? Heh, and, yes, some things might be, at least temporarily, on hiatus! Thanks for tee comment about the chapter proper, I was hoping that I blended the two well, glad to hear I succeeded!

Soap: Glad ya like it, and thanks for the review!

studyofchaos: and I hope things get even more interesting soon! Thanks for the compliment, hope you continue to enjoy!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Kim smiled softly as she raised the bouquet of real, naturally fragrant flowers - a rare thing with the scent almost bred out of many flowers over the years - once again, gently sniffing the mingled blooms. The aroma was heady, almost as intoxicating as the emotions she'd felt since she'd received them that very morning, as an apology from Shay and Ron both. They'd had to delay going to see various museums and sights in Amsterdam together, since both of them, it seemed, were roped into 'simple, easy jobs' for the day. Kim wouldn't have minded even without the flowers in all honesty; she understood that Shay did, indeed, have a business in security consultancy, and Ron had… Obligations… To Yamanouchi.

Kim would be the first to admit that while she loved romantic gestures, she didn't_ expect _them in these kinds of situations. As such, she'd never expected something quite like what Shay, with suggestions from Ron, had ordered. The bouquet was mixed, with three calla lilies and three orchids as the centerpiece, surrounded by six irises. Most of the flowers she'd seen before in passing during a mission, but the irises had been the only ones she'd ever received in a bouquet, one Ron had given her a few months earlier.

The lilies in the bouquet were all a soft pink color at the tips, fading to a deep, vibrant red towards the center of the flower. The orchids were three separate colors, one red, one yellow and one white. The irises were mixed, with two of orange, two of a deep, rich purple and two of a lovely pale blue, all of which paled to a far lighter color towards the center.

Shay's job_ had _been a bit of a surprise, though. The older woman had gone out to get a few things for breakfast, but when she'd returned, she explained that an old friend had called. Like Yori's assurances to Ron, it was supposed to be something that'd be simple and easy. Then, saying that Ron had made part of the suggestion, she'd presented Kim with the bouquet. When Kim had asked why they'd gotten the bouquet, they'd explained it was for taking time away from her on their vacation.

Even though she'd allowed them to go with nary a protest, she wondered after her fiancé and her lover… Especially when Ron informed Rufus that he wanted the naked mole rat to stay behind, ostensibly to look after Kim. She hoped everything was going alright at the very least. She glanced over at the clock, realizing it was almost ten a.m., and decided she wanted to go out and see a few things for herself. A little bit of an adventure seemed the perfect distraction… And it would be fairly easy on own, especially after Shay informed her that almost everyone in Amsterdam spoke fluent or at least passable English.

"Hey, Rufus!" she called out as she shut the TV off. The clothing-challenged rat poked his head up from the other side of the kitchen counter, where he'd been preparing them a light brunch, and chittered questioningly at her. She giggled softly and cocked her head, "You want to go out and see a few sights with me after we eat?"

"Uh-huh, uh-huh! Yup!" the pink rat's head bobbed in enthusiastic agreement, before he gave her a thumbs up.

The red-head had asked Shay a few places she should go the prior night, and the first suggestion had Kim rather excited. "So, Rufus… The canal cruise after breakfast, walking around, or people-watching in Dam Square?"

Rufus sat and fumed in thought for a moment, obviously challenged by the decision. Kim went about grabbing her things, debating wearing her new mission outfit under her clothing. She'd done it several times before going on vacation, and it was always a good idea to be prepared…

She almost snorted a laugh when she realized she was thinking as she would have during high school and early in her first college semester. Something she hadn't done since late June or early July… The same time she started to believe she wasn't that much of a heroine. With a firm nod, she decided to go for a pair of comfortable slacks and full length, long sleeved shirt, and carry a 'light' mission set with her._ Just in case… _she reiterated to herself, before heading upstairs to change, "I'll be right back, Rufus! Gonna go get ready, take your time and get a li'l cheese to help you think!"

"Okay!" the naked mole rat agreed happily, making his way over to the fridge which he'd discovered he could open with moderate effort. Kim giggled softly as she made her way to the stairs, ascending and going into Shay's bedroom. She had to smile at the simple décor of the room; it was far from Spartan, but it wasn't cluttered, either. The bed was an import from the States, and took up well over two thirds of the room's space. It was a so-called Wyoming King, which was as long as a California King, but just as wide. The bed was_ incredibly _comfortable, the perfect blend of firm and soft and Shay had gone all out with the bedding. The sheets were high thread count Egyptian cotton in a soft, almost pastel green and a down stuffed comforter with a wild herringbone pattern of black and green, made from, of all materials, woven llama hair. Kim shook her head once again at Shay's tendency for extravagance before glancing at the other pieces in the bedroom.

Against the corners next to the bed were two well-made, modern style nightstands. Upon each was a small, stylishly modern, angular ceramic lamps that featured 'one touch' on and off functions on the lampshade frames. Kim wasn't sure what was in the stands, but she wasn't about to go snooping. Against the wall just to the left of the entrance was a dresser, and atop that were a few pictures, including the one she'd looked at the day before. The dresser easily came up to Kim's chin, and while it had only had a few changes of clothes for Shay, it was now almost half full, stocked with all three of their clothing.

The room didn't have a closet, but at the foot of the bed was a positively massive armoire, which made Kim giggle at a stray thought, _Definitely something Shay would've purchased… _It was black and silver, which oddly fit with the creams, soft pastel blues and burgundy of her carpet, and the black and green of her bedset. She swept the doors open and grabbed her mission suit, almost missing that both Ron's and Shay's were missing, too. This troubled her, but a moment later she dismissed her worry, figuring they were both just trying to be prepared much like she was. Shrugging, she turned back to the room and laid her mission suit out on the bed. She glanced around the bedroom once again, sighing softly and how inviting her lover's room was._ I feel comfortable in her bedroom, and so does Ron… _She smiled softly as she thought about that for a moment longer,_ Or is it _our_ bedroom, now?_

The thought sent a warm rush down her back, one that seemed to bounce off of her tailbone and rush right back to her face. She smiled despite the blush, quickly stripping her pants and panties off and slipping into her mission outfit. She kept the hood in its integrated stowage compartment, and left the almost invisible seam along the front open down to her naval.

She glanced at herself in the full length mirror on the back of the door, admiring how the morning light streaming through the window played across her muscles._ I guess Ron and Shay are right, _she admitted to herself,_ I _am_ dead sexy!_ She'd always been jealous of women like Shay and Bonnie… Hell, a _lot_ of women she could mention, for that matter! So many of them had bodies she'd have killed for, wider hips, or larger breasts… Even Tara, whom she had shared an almost identical body to her for the longest time, was now more well-endowed in the chest, and her hips had filled out some! But… With the way some men, and even women, reacted to her, and especially Ron and now Shay, she'd started to come to grips with her decided lack of chest or hip size.

_I just hope that mom's right, and I inherited her genes for her chest!_ The thought brought a smirk, the memory of their last conversation about their bodies floating through her mind. How her mother had eventually told her that if Ron was happy with her body now, he'd be ecstatic in a few years if Kim followed her mother's growth cycle. She had some hope after her conversation with Monique the night before, especially when the dark skinned beauty had complained about her chest having grown a half cup size since they'd last seen each other. _Maybe_ I _shouldn't complain… _Kim thought after a moment,_ Considering what I do for a living and Mo's complaints about her back… I just wish I had a little more up top._

"Stop worrying about it!" she sighed to herself, shaking her head at her own woolgathering, "Ron and Shay say they're perfect, so quit worrying about it and finish getting ready…" Making a snap decision, she grabbed a soft, blue blouse that had a tastefully deep v-neck from the armoire and a stylish, narrow-bottomed pair of women's slacks from the dresser. She grabbed an artist's bag for her smaller set of mission gear and, more importantly for the trip, her prized pair of headphones.

She had asked Wade to design and build them to her specifications, and he'd come through for her in spades. Considering how much consulting time they'd had over them, he'd ended up offering her a cut of the profits when he'd sold the design to a major player in the high end headphone business. It had been impressive, and while she'd kept some for herself, most of it went into Team Possible's coffers for new equipment and equipment designs. The headphones were far from sleek, but reproduced sound beautifully. They also had a couple of auxiliary functions, such as Bluetooth connection to the Kimmunicators, and what Wade called an 'outside world awareness function', which allowed the user to hear some surrounding sounds, and outright cut the audio in situations such as a car horn blaring.

Smiling to herself, she put the headphones around her neck and plugged them into her older Kimmunicator which she was currently using as a portable music player. She made her way down to the kitchen, just in time to see Rufus putting the cheese away in the fridge. She walked to the coatrack and grabbed a light jacket with a large outer breast pocket on the left, calling out, "Ready, Rufus?"

"Yup!" he cried, dashing over to her and climbing up her pants leg. She reached down and grabbed him, placing him gently in the front pocket before heading towards the door.

"How about that Greek place when lunch hits?" she asked, the enthusiastic nods from the clothing challenged rat drawing a soft giggle from her as she locked up behind her…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"I've got a bad feeling about this…" Ron sighed softly in Japanese as he, Yori and five of Yamanouchi's top ninja exited their van and stepped into the tight confines of one of Amsterdam's docks. To their left, right and behind, stacks of shipping containers stood as if silent sentinels, stacked in a few cases as high as six stories. The sounds of a working dock, oddly, were distant, as if all operations in the area had been cut short for the meeting Yamanouchi's best had been asked to watch over. The blond glanced around and spotted the man they had come to protect, as well as some of the backup he'd brought along. "I mean, a_ really _bad, five hundred miles of bad road feeling…"

"Why is that, Ron-sama?" Yori inquired easily, giving a barely perceptible nod; immediately the five ninja with her and Ron fanned out, easily disappearing into the maze of shipping containers to find optimal spots to watch over the proceedings. She grimaced slightly, and Ron understood why; the man they were protecting was out in the open, leaning against a moderately sized Mercedes sedan, which in turn sat next to a small office building connected to a huge warehouse. The dock had once served as a holding area for vehicles ranging from cars up to huge mining trucks. Since not long after the Lorwardian attack, it had served another, more important purpose: receiving of goods to be used in reconstruction. The owner of this particular dock was of special import, since he wasn't charging fees for donated items, items belonging to NGOs, or any construction supplies and equipment used in building or rebuilding hospitals, schools and elderly care facilities.

"Well, first off what bugs me is how… Open this place is," he muttered uneasily, glancing about. Despite the maze and stacks of shipping containers, he saw Yori nod in agreement with him, a soft smile tugging at her lips, both of them knowing Ron wouldn't have given much thought to that a few months earlier. "And second? Check out his backup…" Ron nodded at men and women that, to most observers, would appear to be regular dock workers at a busy dock… Except for the lack of activity in cranes and vehicular traffic.

Thanks to Yori and Hirotaka's diligent efforts, Ron could tell that each man was at the very least professional. Based on his brief observations, he quickly amended that to probably quite good at their jobs. Although they blended in with the crowd, someone that knew what to look for would see them; their eyes were constantly scanning the docks, their gazes never stopping for too long, nor did they stand in one place too long. The movement was aided by the need to appear to be part of the regular dock crew, but that would only go so far had they not been as good as they appeared to be.

_Professional bodyguards, and a few hench or muscle types, all armed, if the bulges I can see in a few places are any indication._ Aloud, he murmured quietly, "It's like this… Feeling I've got? If this was going to be so easy, why meet up here at the docks… Or at least, why not let normal activity keep going, if they're so worried?" The comment drew a soft chuckle from Yori, which drew a somewhat ire-filled glance from Ron. "I just don't get why he needs so much muscle?"

"Ah, I have missed your American style humor, Ron-sama!" she chided. Seeing that he was being quite serious, she shook her head and explained, "I also see that you were not fully appraised of the situation?"

Ron nodded sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck. "The papers explaining things arrived as I was leaving, and it only took us ten minutes to get to the safehouse…" he admitted, "I only got about halfway down the second page."

"You only managed to read the contingency plans?" She prodded, to which Ron sheepishly nodded. "I see." Yori shook her head, pursing her lips, "You should not be ashamed of asking to be brought up to speed, Ron-sama. It is your honor to know your expected duties in a situation such as this." Ron nodded, his face briefly displaying his feeling of humility at the admonishment, before Yori smiled softly and continued, "The reason for meeting here is because Achterkamp-san is seeking to relinquish his position in the Western European organized crime to a friendly rival, Balisteri-san. Both are… Honorable, among their ilk, and they have helped Yamanouchi in the past, as we have them. Achterkamp-san wishes his family to enjoy the new world the invasion has ushered in, unfettered by his family's past, and Yamanouchi - as well as Global Justice - wishes Balisteri-san's family to acquire his less than legal interests." Yori sighed and continued in a darker tone, "However, there are… Others, less honorable, and more than willing to spill blood in a barbaric manner to achieve their ends. That is why we are here, Ron-sama…"

"Okay… I guess I could see them wanting to avoid too many unknown faces, that's why the lack of work, but…" Yori nodded for Ron to go on, but then noticed that he was silently staring at Achterkamp. She blinked as Ron rolled his shoulders against a seeming chill, despite the warm morning, "Oh,_ man_, this just got scary…"

"Ron-sama?" Yori prodded when he stayed silent and kept his gaze seeming riveted on the man they were meeting. He was a thin man, and obviously tall, with a well coifed mane of gray hair and a close cropped, neatly trimmed beard and moustache. He had the thin, almost pointy nose, narrow lips and broad cheekbones that bespoke of his Dutch heritage. Despite his business, his soft, sea green eyes were kindly and the wrinkles about his mouth seemed more familiar with smiles than frowns. He wore a tweed and cotton business suit, looking for all the world to be a grandfatherly CEO awaiting business with his personal secretary.

The recognition of the woman standing beside the man they were meeting drew a wince from Yori as she realized what Ron was getting at. Although she forced herself to hide a wince, she couldn't keep her eyes from widening in shock for a moment. There, sitting next to Hendrick Achterkamp, de facto head of Western Europe's organized crime import and export business concerns, was someone Yori recognized, and that Ron had come to know quite well in the prior few weeks. She wore what could easily be considered a secretarial power suit, with a knee length, light gray skirt and jacket, a soft blue blouse, dark colored pantyhose, and, almost incongruously, a pair of sensible men's dress shoes. "Why is Shego-san here?"

"I have an idea…" Ron grimaced, shaking his head in worry, "No time to worry now, Yori… Besides, it could be a good thing if things_ do _go south on us!"

Yori nodded and stepped in front of Ron, just as he was opening his mouth to speak, "Achterkamp-san, it is a pleasure!"

"Yori!" the man greeted with a smile, his English surprisingly accentless, obviously not having expected her to be Yamanouchi's representative, "I'm pleased that you're the neutral party representative."

"Yes, and I have brought along additional protection." She stepped aside and Hendrick's eyes widened slightly, "Achterkamp-san, meet Ronald Stoppable."

"Well…" he breathed, glancing over at Shay, who was grinning and shaking her head as if at some cosmic joke, "I guess calling you in for that last debt was just icing on the cake?"

"You could say that, Henry…" Shay chuckled, waving at the office, "Since the neutral party's here, shall we?" Everyone nodded, stepping into the simple managerial office. It was a bit more protected than the outside, but Ron still felt nervous about the windows that allowed plentiful natural light into the office. Hendrick nodded towards the desk that took up a good chunk of the office's space, around which seven folding chairs had been set. He sat with his back to the most solid wall in the building, Yori took a position at his right, which put her back to the only window that was open to a view other than shipping containers. Shay sat opposite her and Ron sat to her left, so he could watch Yori's back next to his fiancée's lover.

"Well, I hope the other party gets here soo-…" Ron started, then froze, feeling the chill across his back again, "Why does it feel like someone's dropping ice down my neck?"

"It's the exposure, Sport…" Shay murmured just loud enough for Ron to hear in somewhat fluent Japanese, as if wanting to keep Yori in the loop, "Keep your eyes on the tops of the piles, silos and cranes in that bulk terminal across the way, I've got a_ bad _feeling…"

"Indeed, Shego-san…" Yori agreed, reaching to the inside breast pocket of her own suit, tapping in a seemingly nervous manner, but which actually sent an electronic signal in something similar to Morse code to the Yamanouchi ninja on patrol. Aloud, she addressed the elderly gangster, "Achterkamp-san, when is Balisteri-san supposed to arrive?"

"I believe that's Vincente there, Yori." He nodded to a BMW SUV that had just pulled up, followed by two BMW sedans. Almost ten men piled out of the three vehicles, three of which headed towards the office. Yori nodded in agreement, and smiled ever so slightly as the lead man from Vincente's protection team walked over to the lead for Hendrick's team and the third in command of the Yamanouchi ninja she and Ron had arrived with.

"It seems like he brought Tino and Alfonso as well, just as he promised, since his sons_ will _inherit his holdings in the course of time." Hendrick's voice was approving, and noticeably relaxed in the space of those few sentences. "For you and Yori, Mr. Stoppable, that Tino on our left."

Ron followed his gaze, his eyes alighting on Vincente Balisteri first; he was, to be generous, a portly man, yet despite this, he moved like a man that still bore a good deal of muscle on his frame. He wore a nice, but not overstated business suit, as did the two young men walking beside him. The first thing Ron noticed about the man, even from the distance, was that he had a high, heavily hooked nose, the kind that had been on the receiving end of more than its fair share of punches. The big man also wore a monk's fringe of thin, black hair, liberally peppered with strands of white. As they got closer, the man's pencil thin moustache combined easily with his narrow, low cheekbones, broad, thin lips and jowly cheeks to lend a genial air to his otherwise serious face. His somewhat close set, piercing coal black eyes belied his appearance of geniality, constantly roving across his surroundings as if belonging to a lion seeking prey. His positively huge hands looked to be rough and calloused from years of work.

As indicated, Tino Balisteri stood to his right, and was an almost beautiful looking man, though he bore the same piercing, coal black eyes as Vincente. The eyes, if nothing else, gave the impression he was a man not to cross, despite his gentle facial features and build. His nose was small and delicate and his eyes gave the illusion of being inviting, if one could ignore the dangerous intensity within them. His lips were cherubically plump and pert, and he had wide, high cheekbones that swept smoothly to a soft, gracefully angular jaw. His shoulder length hair was a platinum blonde so pale as to appear silverish in the sunlight. It was fine and thick, painstakingly styled into a pleasant wave that almost blended into his almost ethereally pale skin.

Tino seemed positively effeminate in comparison to his brother Alfonso. The elder of the two, Alfonso stood almost a half a head taller than his father and his frame was visibly packed with muscle, and very little extraneous fat, despite his suit being tailored to conceal it. Aside from his eyes - which were a soft, easy-going blue - and lacking the weight induced jowls, he looked like his father writ larger. His nose, like Vincente's, was heavily abused, but unlike his father's, it bore a noticeable, if subtle cant to the left of his face. There were a few faint scars on the left side of his face, their thin, white presence implying he'd received them from a knife. His black hair was cut in a short, no-nonsense style, as was his goatee and moustache.

When Vincente entered the office, he called out jovially in thickly accented English, his tone at odds with his features and bearing, "Hendrick, my old friend, how are you?"

"I am well, Vincente, yourself?" Hendrick answered, nodding to Shay, who reached down to her left and pulled out what appeared to be a laptop.

After pressing a button, a soft susurration swept across the table, then an odd sensation of pressure filled the area, making Shay's voice sound as if she were speaking to them with their ears full of water. "GJ would have trouble hearing us now…" She nodded at Ron and he stood, stepping away from the table and approaching the windows that looked upon the open area to their south.

"Ah, finally, to business…" was the last thing Ron heard from the table as they got a few feet from the sound dampener Shay had set up on the table.

"Something Dr. D. cooked up a few years back…" Shay chuckled at Ron's raised eyebrow.

"Wait, he made something that worked?" Ron asked skeptically, earning a soft giggle from Shay.

"No, silly," she said, scanning the surroundings behind Ron as she continued, "It was supposed to amplify his voice twenty fold…"

"You're kidding." Ron murmured, glancing at her and seeing she was, despite her humor, being completely serious, "You're not kidding."

"Not in the least," Shego quipped. "He's just lucky to have not only Vivi there to keep his mind working straight, but Wade to go over his inventions so they generally work as planned…_ Or _to tell him to keep on it when he stumbles into a happy accident like the sound dampening field here…"

Ron smiled anemically at the small jab before he sighed and shook his head, glancing at her and catching her eye, "Um, Shay…"

"I owe old man Achterkamp a debt…" She murmured softly, an oddly regretful smile tugging at her lips, "He got me into the business despite my being a former superhero, back in the day… Helped set up my first interview with Hench himself."

"Ah…" Ron nodded to show he was following, narrowing his eyes and signaling one of the Yamanouchi ninja to check out a minivan that was marked with a delivery service's logo. Shay continued after a moment, reaching up to tap at the earbud

style microphone and whisper something softly into it.

After letting go of the activation button, she sighed and shook her head, zeroing in on several areas that made her nervous, before continuing, "The only reason he called me in is 'cause he's using the GJ's 'Low Threat Criminal Organization, Post Invasion Humanitarian' pardon to get_ out _of the business… It helps that he's done a_ lot _of that same humanitarian work during his entire time in the biz…" She shrugged slightly, "This whole thing's been given an unofficial okay by GJ, 'cause neither of the families here are really,_ truly _bad guys…"

"I kinda got that from Yori calling them honorable." Ron agreed. They both fell silent as the negotiations went on, keeping their eyes peeled for trouble. After almost a half hour, Ron glanced over and relaxed slightly as he noticed them signing the documents that would turn over the legal assets of Hendrick's businesses to Vincente.

"Now's when stuff should start happening, right?" Ron chuckled nervously as Yori smiled and bowed to the two men, then countersigned as a witness to the deal.

"Yeah…" Shay agreed as she glanced back, then out to see the delivery truck take a wide path around the office and towards the far end of the warehouse. "This is the time to pay the most attention, Sport…" she concluded, drawing a slow nod from Ron

Ron tensed slightly when Toni reached into his suit jacket's inside pocket, then relaxed as he produced a small embossing stamp. He signed below the other three signatures, then embossed his notary stamp into the papers, drawing big smiles from Hendrick and Vincente. "Looks like it's done…" Ron concluded, turning to gaze back to the bulk shipping terminal across the waterway.

The odd, damped sound in the office dropped, allowing Ron and Shego to hear the four men and Yori talking about what they'd like to do. "If you wish to have lunch together, do you wish Stoppable-san and I to accompany you, or are our services no longer needed?"

"Couldn't hurt." Vincente pursed his lips together, "If they haven't struck now, they won't be able to, considering the deal's finalized and will be in the appropriate governmental offices soon enough."

"True," Hendrick chuckled, "but one can never be too careful in this business, eh, Vincente?"

"Ain't that the truth!" Shay quipped as Vincente nodded, earning a chuckle from all of them, "Where are we going?"

"I have to say," Toni murmured, "I'm honestly in the mood for Italian food." This drew a skeptically raised eyebrow from both Shay and Alfonso. Toni laughed, his surprisingly accentless English still managing to sound comfortingly cultured, "I've spent the last six months in France, eating with clients, after all! It's been something of a French cuisine overload."

"That's understandable." Hendrick smiled, "I have the perfect place…" He glanced at Shay, a mischievous glint in his eyes, "Location three, Shego."

"Right." Shay murmured, "C'mon, Ron, let's get your crew up to speed in a good ol' face to face."

"One moment, Shego-san…" Yori murmured in Japanese, checking her phone with a frown, before glancing at Ron, "Hirotaka-san has not checked in yet."

Ron pondered this for a moment, his brow furrowing under the sudden burden of a command decision. He pursed his lips in worry as he thought, before sighing slightly and shrugging and speaking in Japanese as well, "What was his last message?"

"He said standard 'Contingency Three'." Yori explained, glancing at Shay, "There is a possible problem, and he is checking into it."

Ron nodded, then shrugged, "That could take him some time… Keep me posted if he gets back to you, but for now, Shay and I will update our people here." Yori nodded and bowed slightly, before reaching up to signal the Yamanouchi ninja to converge on the office building, Shay signaling the men and women Hendrick had hired to do the same.

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shego glanced out the window of the big SUV, her eyes narrowing at the sight of a few street toughs giving them a far too intense stare. Most people would have disregarded the three late teen and early twenties men as just being regular citizens, but Shego had been a part of that very world for… Far too long, if she were honest with herself. Pursing her lips, she tapped the driver on the shoulder, "Take the next left, there should be an alleyway halfway down, take that and come back to this street and continue this direction, then take it to the following right, follow it 'til the next canal and find the first free parking spot."

"Yes ma'am." the Japanese man responded, his accent an odd mix of Amsterdam local and a cultured Kyoto-ben. Sitting next to him, Yori reached into her jacket, tapping a code into her communicator for the ninja following them. She nodded at the driver as he and the third of the staggered convoy of vehicles behind him waited for a break in traffic to turn left. Half of the collection of vehicles went straight and the remainder went right, drawing a pleased smile from the pale woman.

"Good call, Yori." she murmured softly in Japanese, then turned to a concerned Toni, who had a raised eyebrow at the apparent paranoia the former thief was displaying, "What's up, Toni?"

"Why the paranoia, Shego?" he asked, drawing the attention of his brother and the two older men in the vehicle with them.

"Paranoia keeps you alive." Ron murmured from behind them, having spotted what Shego had after her reaction, "There were some thugs on the north corner of the street back there. The ones in the spendy jogging shoes, pants and hoodies. I missed them 'cause I was watching the other side and back, and only caught on 'cause Shay noticed them."

Shay almost flinched at his use of her name, realizing that she'd been thinking of herself as, frankly, her old, 'evil' self. She barely repressed a growl as the by now sickeningly familiar voice whispered in the back of her mind,_ Not so easy to get away from it, is it,_ Shego_? _With an insidious sounding chuckle coloring the voice darkly, it continued,_ You know it's the only thing you're good at… Well, that and getting those you protect or love hurt…_

The potential for an internal argument, one that would have distracted her from the duties she'd taken on, was cut short when Toni spoke up, something for which she was grateful. "I, erm, they were not students on a run?" he blinked, glancing at his father and brother as they chuckled, "I thought, the way they watched us, that they were merely admiring the vehicles."

"They_ might _have been," Alfonso acknowledged, smiling at his younger brother, "_But_… There was an… Air about them. One you, being a corporate lawyer, would be unfamiliar with, Toni."

"Indeed." Hendrick and Vincente agreed. Vincente nodded at Hendrick to continue, "They paid far too much attention to us… The kind of people that know something's going down hope to gain some… I believe the American term is 'street cred'?"

He glanced between Shay and Ron, and the former thief nodded, continuing where he left off, "When you're a small fish in the big pond, you have to have an advantage." She held up a finger and briefly let a small, nearly heatless flame appear, "I had this when I started, as well as a sense of honor, which is why Henry took me in when most other people discarded me as a plant or wannabe. Dr. Drakken actually had to build working tech for Hench to get the crooked bastard to float his name to villainous venture capitalists. Lucky for Doc, his stun staves were his best work before the Li'l Diablos and the tech he used against the Lorwardians. Falsetto Jones had to steal a painting from the Louvre during the day." She pursed her lips in thought for a moment, "Of the big supervillainous players before the Lowardians, only Gemini and Dementor were able to strike out on their own without breaking any laws before starting their world domination plots, 'cause they were already rich."

She glanced back and nodded in satisfaction as the smallest of the bunch was just appearing at the corner and scanning for them, "Those three? If they're a clique, they're trying to get some cred to lure more of a crew to run with 'em… If they're part of a full blown gang, getting info on what we're doing or where we are, or at least_ were_, will get them cred within their group and get the group cred with their peers, potentially getting them a chance at the big leagues."

"So…" Toni drew out the word as comprehension dawned in the depths of his eyes, "Much like networking would be for myself, or my father or Hendrick when it comes to the legal side of things." Toni pursed his before sighing and shaking his head, "No wonder you wanted me on this, Father." Vincente nodded, pleased that his son was catching on to the less savory side of his business dealings. Shego hid a smirk at the interaction, having figured that Toni had either been sheltered from this side of things, or had only recently expressed interest in joining the 'family business'. She presumed the latter, as he still had a bit more naïveté than most lawyers working for a crime family.

The maneuver went smoothly, and Shay's smirk widened into an outright grin._ Ron's friends are_ good_! _she chuckled lightly, drawing a glance from Yori. In Japanese, she murmured, "Nicely done, Yori, you and your crew pulled that off smoother than I expected."

Yori smiled at the compliment from the older woman, bowing her head slightly, "Thank you, Shego-san, you honor us with your praise."

"No big…" she murmured, only then realizing she'd yet again borrowed one of Kim's phrases. She flushed slightly, before shrugging and glancing out of her side of the vehicle as they pulled back onto their original street. She chuckled as she noticed the three toughs watching the street they'd gone down, "Gotcha, boys…"

"Shego," Hendrick murmured, "Should I have the original boat move to our new location?"

"Nah," Shay shook her head, "We'll rent one. That should throw them off even more, especially if one of Yori's people buys the tickets."

"Which has already been done." Yori said with a satisfied smile.

"I'll be glad when this is all done." Ron muttered, his gaze sweeping across the rear and left side of the vehicle, "The tension is killer!"

"Better a bit of tension now than being dead later." Shay agreed in a morbidly chipper fashion.

_Yes… _the voice whispered once again,_ After all, you're not even sure if you want to fall in love with the boy or just screw him, do you?_ She felt her skin crawl at the tone the voice used, but its next comment took her by surprise. _Or maybe you _should _just screw him now! No regrets, right? That way you'll_ know_, won't you? But then_…_ Think of poor Kimmie_…_ She might not want to stick around after that, if all you do is screw him… She wants the whole package with both of you, doesn't she?_

The voice made a sound as if trying to make a very hard decision, before sighing_, But, then again, she loves you _oh_-so-_much_! And we_ both _know you'd be happy to have yourself a lover that won't leave and a boy toy when her tight little body got tiring!_ A sickeningly sweet giggle followed the declaration, and Shay couldn't help but imagine that her that wasn't her shaking its head ruefully,_ So, you see, no matter what you do, you're still just being a selfish whore little whore…_

Shay barely repressed the urge to frown at the thought, desiring nothing more than to deny the implied accusation… But finding her arguments against it weak. The search for an answer to the question and her feelings for not just Kim, but possibly Ron, began to take more of her attention than she'd like, so she tried to shove it down in the deep, dark hole it had been in for the last several years…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Yeah, Mo," Kim sighed, blushing slightly at the last comment her best female friend had just made, "It's… Incredible, to be honest."

"Oh, NYD; details, GF!" Monique chuckled, the holographic projection of her face grinning cherubically at her friend. Kim had arranged for Wade to get Monique a simplified version of the Kimmunicator so they could talk 'face to face', even over the phone. It seemed to have helped more than the talk they'd had the prior night to heal the rift that Kim had unintentionally opened. "And in case you've been away from Monique-speak for too long, that's 'No. You. Don't.'…"

"Ha, ha, Mo…" Kim rolled her eyes, then giggled, her blush intensifying a bit, "Truthfully, that's it. Shay's my girlfriend, I'm still with Ron, and, well…" Monique snorted in amusement, shaking her head in wonder at her friend. "Seriously, that's it! I mean, Ron's fine with things as they are, he says he's as in love with her as I am, but he just wants us happy, however it happens… I just hope that Shay gets over whatever it is she's got goin' on in her head and figures out what she wants with him!" Kim frowned at the thought, then sighed and added, "Though I hope she wants to be with him like she is with me… She deserves as much love as we can both give her!"

"What about Ron?" Monique asked, honest curiosity taking any sting from the blunt question.

"I want Ron to have both of us, obviously!" Kim exclaimed in a quiet fashion, her eyes flashing with amusement at Monique's suddenly raised eyebrow, before lowering, her expression becoming serious. "He… For everything I've put him through, it's the least I can hope for, y'know?"

"That's…" Mo said, chewing her lip and frowning slightly, even as she nodded in agreement with Kim's sentiment, "Disturbingly romantic of Ron, GF." She shrugged and narrowed her eyes slightly, "And you, TBH. And you're comin' out about it this Thursday on 'The Summer Gale Report'." Kim arched an eyebrow in confusion, and Monique chuckled evilly, "The girl I've known for years, who always said she wasn't into the whole public image thing, and what's the first thing you do when someone tries to out you?" Kim rolled her eyes, but the dark skinned beauty clucked her tongue disapprovingly while shaking her head, "Hmm-mmm, ONYD, GF!"

Rufus, who had been watching the whole situation with amusement, drew Kim's attention before she could reply. "Hrnk, huh?" He murmured, blinking in confusion and going so far as to stop eating the tasty cheesesticks they'd been snacking on as he swept his gaze across the crowd. His eyes widened in shock as he gestured excitedly at someone he'd spotted.

"What is it, Rufus?" Kim giggled at his excited face, "Are Ron or Shay in the area?"

"No, Hiro-kun!" Rufus cried, pointing. Kim blinked, turning to follow the little mole rat's excited gaze and pointed finger. When she saw that it was Hirotaka of the Yamanouchi school that Rufus was excited to see, she felt a raging surge of conflicting emotions, shock and pleasure being the foremost. Soon after came an odd mix of desire and disgust, then some guilt for feeling them, before her mind began - rather more clinically than she honestly felt comfortable with - to dissect the physical aspects of the man.

He was, obviously, a couple years older than he'd been the last time she'd seen him. He was now in his early twenties, and while his face was still smooth and, for a man, quite beautiful, it had gained a touch of maturity that hadn't been there before. His hair, while still well styled, was shorter and looked, oddly enough, almost like one that could be seen in a corporate office. His arms, chest and legs, clearly visible in the tight fitting, long sleeved gray sweater he wore, were larger than they had been, but not by much. He still moved with the preternatural grace of what Kim had come to consider a 'real' ninja, his eyes sweeping back and forth in a seemingly unconscious manner.

"Um, I kinda have to go, Mo…" Kim murmured, drawing a brief, worried moue from the woman on the holographic screen.

"Did he mean Hiro-kun as in that TGTBT Japanese hottie, Hirotaka?" Monique prodded gently, drawing Kim's attention back to her.

"I think so, Mo!" Kim giggled at Monique's worried expression, easily guessing what she was worried about. Smirking in a fashion that Shego would've been proud of and winked, "Tell ya what, if it is, I'll ask if he's single for ya and get his number!"

"That'd better be AYD, GF!" Monique grumped, remembering just how gaga Kim had gone over the beautiful Japanese man when he'd been an exchange student at Middleton High School, "You already got enough in the love department!"

"Don't worry so much, Mo!" Kim laughed as she gathered the last of the cheesesticks for herself and stood, "I'm_ so _over him!" She glanced down once again and winked at her friend, "But from where I'm standing, his ass is even better than last time!"

"Oh, DYD tease me, GF!" Monique started, but was silenced by a raspberry from Kim.

"Talk to you later, Mo!" Kim said in a sing-song voice to her best friend, before ending the call and picking up her pace. She'd lost track of him, but almost literally ran into him as he was emerging from a large clump of American exchange students. They jumped back in shock as battle honed movements caused them to almost dance around each other. Kim looked up at the tall Japanese man in surprise, not having expected to catch him off guard, and exclaimed, "Hirotaka!"

"K-Kim-sama?" he asked, equally surprised.

Kim, in a rare bit of deception that worked in her favor, didn't fight the blush that came to her cheeks as she giggled nervously, murmuring, "Sorry, I was just heading over to the canal to take a tour." Normally, the left handed glance that slipped past her control was an indicator of her dishonesty, but, luckily for her, there was indeed a tour boat launch in the direction of her gaze.

"Uh, huh!" Rufus agreed. While he wasn't being completely honest, he had far more experience in casual lies than Kim and he had the advantage that they had indeed planned to go on a tour… Later. "Hi, Hiro-kun!"

"Rufus-sama!" Hirotaka bowed slightly, taking in both of them, before grinning ruefully, "I see you decided to stay with Kim-sama instead of helping Yori-chan and Ron-sama?"

"Hrnk, wha' 'bout you?" Rufus asked, just as Kim opened her mouth to ask the same question.

"I…" he started, then realized that Kim and Rufus were both staring at him in sudden, intense concentration. Kim could see the gears working in his mind, guessing that he was trying to decide between lying or telling the truth. In the end, with a last glance at Rufus who was tapping his foot, he sighed and murmured, "I'm here following a lead for Yori-chan…"

"So you're here helping Ron and Yori with whatever it is they're doing for Yamanouchi?" Kim asked, and the large Japanese man nodded almost nervously.

"Hai." he said with a sheepish tone to his voice, scratching the back of his neck in a gesture that reminded Kim of Ron immensely.

"Need a hand?" Kim asked without thinking, smiling at him. She blinked as Hirotaka flinched, trying to hide his reaction but failing. Then she realized just what she'd said and remembered that she was_ supposed_ to be on vacation. Granted, she'd essentially done three missions over in Germany, but two of them had been accidental, spur of the moment missions of happenstance. The third she'd been reluctantly dragged into, but this time, she was offering for free. While she had no problems offering and even helping, she had a feeling Ron had something to do with Hirotaka's subtle reaction. "I know Ron probably set something up to keep me out of it-…"

"He did." Hirotaka nodded with a sigh, shaking his head. Seeing her eyes narrow slightly and misunderstanding, he added quickly, "But not because he feels you unable, rather-…"

"It's our vacation, mostly for my benefit…" Kim interrupted, softening her gaze with a gentle smile.

"Partly…" Hirotaka agreed, sighing softly, "Kim-san, you know that, as Ron-sama calls it, 'the Big Y' is a more… Gray organization than Team Possible, yes?"

Kim nodded, grimacing slightly before sighing, "I know, you sometimes work with… Less than reputable people." Kim grimaced, "That's why Ron didn't want me to help out, I'm sure."

"Yes…" Hirotaka winced slightly again, "But we only work with the more honorable groups…"

Kim sighed slightly, then smirked, surprising Hirotaka, "Like GJ does, and even Team Possible has, in the past. Brotherson, for example."

"I… See…" Hirotaka blinked, then glanced around. The crowd was still fairly thick, but there was a more favorable spot to continue the conversation at a nearby storefront. The small spot offered an almost accidental alcove with some privacy and would allow the crowd noise to better cover anything said. "We are helping two… Organizations that are in a similar place on the ruler between good and evil, Kim-sama. They are not truly evil, but neither are they truly what could be called good… And one is using GJ's amnesty offer to get out of that business, and turning control ove-…"

"I get it." Kim nodded, understanding on an almost instinctual level that Yamanouchi would not associate willingly with dishonorable members of the underworld. And if it helped one family get out of the business… "That's fine, I can still help."

"Er, Kim-sama…" Hirotaka began, but the determined look in Kim's eyes stilled him, having seen a nearly identical expression in Yori's eyes in the past. He bowed slightly to signify defeat, "Very well, but please, stay close?"

"Of course, Hiro!" Kim giggled softly, glancing at Rufus, "Besides, I kinda wanna do more than sightsee today, and we can spend some more time doing this stuff tomorrow, right big guy?"

"Uh, huh!" Rufus agreed, giving Hirotaka a double thumbs up, before dropping into a kung-fu stance and making a few moves.

Hirotaka sighed, the look on his face making it clear he worried just how badly Ron would take the addition of Kim to the situation. With a shrug and a light smirk, he murmured quietly, "Perhaps the unexpected will be good for Ron-sama…"

"Probably." Kim agreed, startling Hirotaka with her keen hearing. With a last giggle, Kim became serious, her face dropping into mission mode as she glanced about, "What's the sitch?"

"I was following some suspicious individuals who were attempting to spy on the negotiations." Hirotaka said without missing a beat, "When they got to the square to the north, they managed to evade me, but one of my men still has them. Unfortunately, they have, as you Americans say, 'holed up' in an apartment one street over. One of them left - to make a rendezvous with their people, I'm certain - but he has evaded me as well."

"Do you have a picture?" Kim asked, grimacing slightly when Hirotaka shook his head negatively.

"He is about my height, thin, wearing a grey suit, blue and green tie, slicked back hair and green tinted sunglasses."

"I think I saw him earlier…" Kim murmured, glancing at Rufus, who nodded, then back at Hirotaka, "Did he have a pony tail about shoulder length?"

Hirotaka nodded and Kim pondered where she'd seen him. "Stinks!" Rufus added to the pool of knowledge, "Sour milk!"

"Could you follow his scent trail?" Hirotaka asked hopefully, and Rufus nodded, "This is great news! Please, Rufus-sama, lead on!"

Rufus nodded, pointing Kim in the last place he'd smelled the man's unique odor. He quickly picked up on it, and it seems the man had doubled back from his original course. "So what can you tell me about this whole sitch, Hiro?" Kim asked quietly.

"Not much for the time being, Possible-sama, I'm sorry." Hirotaka shrugged apologetically. Kim nodded in acceptance, considering the open area they were in, and how easily someone could listen in on their conversation.

Kim nodded, noticing they'd just passed the table Kim had been sitting at, and the hairs on the back of Kim's neck stand on edge. "Um, Hiro?" she started, only to be shoved into the alleyway by the big ninja.

Kim understood as she saw the dot from a laser sight on the wall where she had just been. An instant later he dove forward and to his right, almost finding himself bowled over by one hundred and twenty six pounds of red-head. He had smelled the cheap cologne worn by the man that had tried sneaking up on him, and Kim had reacted to his presence with aplomb. With a lightning fast series of hand strikes, she was past the already unconscious man and on the first of his five compatriots, delivering a powerful spinning wheel kick to his solar plexus.

Not to be outdone, Hirotaka skipped into the fray, striking out with a spearhand to the throat of the largest of the three remaining men, his left foot coming down firmly on the instep of the shortest of the three. The spearhand wasn't enough to permanently harm the now choking big man, but Hirotaka was quick to follow up with a firm palm strike to his head, just behind the man's right ear.

Kim, having finished with her second target, somersaulted over Hirotaka and planted both feet shoulders of the shortest of the three. Already hopping on one foot, the man started to lose his balance, but was knocked unconscious as Kim kicked out to the side of his head, using the kick as impetus to launch herself at the fourth man, who was reaching into his light windbreaker. She brought her hands down and across her front in an 'X' pattern, the outer blades of her straight hands striking either side of the man's face at eye level. The man, reeling and crying out in pain, was silenced by a double set of kicks from Kim and Hirotaka, Kim's to the man's breadbasket, Hirotaka's to his head.

They turned upon the sixth, who had a cellphone out. They had just started moving towards him when he spoke in rapid fire Russian. Hirotaka, seeming to understand the man, cursed as they both attacked him. It seemed, however, that he'd gotten his message out, for he smashed the phone against the wall instead of taking time to defend himself. Hirotaka and Kim both threw punches, Hirotaka's hitting the man in the gut, doubling the man over and incidentally increasing the force of Kim's punch to his face.

"What was that about?" Kim asked as she risked a brief glance back out of the alleyway, catching sight of the man that had been aiming at her as he picked up what looked like a small satellite dish and moved towards the back side of the roof he'd been on. "Good call on not saying anything, Hiro!" Kim snapped, "The guy with the laser sight had a shotgun microphone with a dish!"

"The Russian told his allies to look for Ron-sama!" Hirotaka cursed viciously in Japanese, knowing that Ron was an immensely recognizable face. He immediately reached into his pocket, pulling out a smartphone and unlocking the screen. He quickly brought Yori's number up on the screen and dialed her number. When she picked up, but before she had a chance to speak, he said, "Contingency Six-A!"

"Okay," Kim huffed, "what's this 'Contingency Six-A' supposed to be?"

"They will be under attack any moment!" Hirotaka said, concerned. "We must hurry!"

"Lead on!" Kim said as she stripped off her regular clothing. Hirotaka was taken aback for a moment, blushing deeply as she quickly stripped out of her shirt. He visibly relaxed when he realized she wore her new mission clothing under her regular clothes. Now fully into mission mode, Kim opened her shoulder bag and Rufus dove in. As he rummaged around for his own mission clothing, even as Kim dug out her mission gear and began to slide it into place on her outfit.

"We must get to our van…" Hirotaka murmured as Kim finished getting ready, dashing off with the red-head in close pursuit…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"So, Ronnie…" Shay murmured quietly as they dined with their charges, "What do you think?" She glanced around at the moderately opulent surroundings with a smirk, familiar with the little place from her past work with Hendrick's organization. The windows were darkly tinted, filtering out the harsh glare of the mid-afternoon sun, with finely etched designs based around fleurs-de-lis the corners.

The design of the room, despite its more traditional flair, was quite contemporary, and melded the two perfectly. The walls were a burled walnut stained a deep cherry red, and along each were wrought iron candle holders with high quality, softly glowing lights. Above the eight person, heavy oaken table they was a chandelier of high quality crystalline glass, with silvery colored steel chains holding it up. The floor was a solid hardwood, stained a honey golden color.

"It's good!" Ron smiled back at her with dancing eyes, "The chef cheated a li'l bit with your main course, but he did it right, and this pasta's_ perfect_!"

"Cheated, Ron-sama?" Yori asked from her spot next to Hendrick, her face screwed up in mild incredulity.

"Well, the prime rib Shay ordered was sliced fresh and flash frozen, and he poached it in a quality _au jus_, just like back home at _La Spécialité_!"

"If it is done right, is it truly cheating, then?" Tino asked with a mild smile on his lips, arching an eyebrow in a challenging yet friendly manner.

"Oh, of course!" Ron answered with a smirk, "It's a time saver, and most people wouldn't realize it for what it is. But, if it's done right, as Chef Andy always says, '…it's just good cooking!'"

"Well, then, the chef you mention is a master of the art." Hendrick declared with a chuckle.

"And you're quite right, Mr. Stoppable," Vincente murmured, eyeing a forkful of _sugo all'arrabbiata_, "The pasta is perfectly cooked… And the chef managed the heat of my all'arrabbiata in just the right manner." He slipped the morsel in his mouth and chewed it slowly, savoring the flavor before letting out a content sigh. "To be honest, I haven't had Italian this good outside of Italy proper for years."

"It_ is _tasty." Alfonso chuckled, enjoying his own order of prime rib, "Although I must admit I am pleased they offered more than_ just _Italian!" He pondered his own, almost dainty slice of prime rib in a similar fashion to his father, "What do you think, Papa, would Alexander enjoy this place?"

Vincente smiled at his elder son, shaking his head in the fashion of a father amused at his child's antics, "My son, you and your boyfriend will have plenty of chances to try the cuisine in Amsterdam…"

"Boyfriend?" Ron mouthed at Shay, an eyebrow raised in surprise. Shay smirked and nodded back at the big Italian, whose mouth was open slightly in shock.

Alfonso, the big, rugged looking man's demeanor had changed in such a short time. He had instantly blushed at his father's easy comment about his boyfriend, before glancing at the elder Balisteri questioningly. Vincente smirked and continued, "You, my son, will be taking over operations here! Both the legal and… Less than legal side of things."

"Y-you…" Alfonso blinked, his blush deepening somewhat, "You mean that, Papa?"

"I told you it was about time to prove yourself." Vincente said in a stern, yet loving fashion, "You have been doing just that back home, and managing to keep our… Business profitable, not to mention discreet yet approachable. It is time for you to move up."

"And not to worry, Alfonso," Tino smiled, "I'll be learning more of the ropes from you here in Amsterdam."

"Th-thank you, Papa!" Alfonso blushed again, "I'll not let you down, I promise!"

"I believe you, son…" Vincente smiled, reaching from his position at the head of the table to place his huge hand on his son's equally large mitt.

"Hmph?" Yori murmured questioningly as she felt her cell phone buzz. She pulled it out and her eyes widened when she noticed Hirotaka's number. Smiling in relief, she took the call and placed it next to her ear, but Hirotaka's hurried Japanese interrupted her before she could speak, the call disconnecting before she could say a word. "Ron-sama! Contingency Six-A!"

"Back door!" Ron said, taking in Shay with a glance, before standing and walking towards Toni, while Yori handled Vincente and Alfonso. "Shay, call in_ all _of your backup!"

"What's happening?" Hendrick wondered aloud as Shay did as Ron suggested, gently pulling the older man up by his arm.

"Somehow they tracked us, and are attempting to jump one of our teams!" Ron informed the Dutch man evenly as they began to descend the steps of the high class restaurant's private area, "We have to get out before they make their move her-…"

A piercing scream and cursing in Dutch assailed their ears as they moved towards the kitchen, followed by a woman chattering in a Slavic language Ron was unfamiliar with. Shay cursed under her breath as she heard the militaristic bent of the woman's speech, glancing at Ron with a worried expression, "I don't like the sounds of that bitch!"

"Hurry it up, then!" Ron bit out, all but shoving the huge Alfonso in front of him. The big man didn't have to be told twice, moving up to assist his father forward. They made it into the kitchen just as the first of the group that had burst from the front dining area and into the short hallway leading to the back of the house. Ron took note that the man was armed with a submachine gun; thinking quickly, he grabbed a silver serving platter from a waiter that was staring wild eyed at the chaos erupting in the kitchen and flung it at the man's feet.

The man, having expected the platter to fly at his face had raised his arms to protect himself, found himself falling backwards. Only well practiced trigger discipline kept him from firing off any rounds as he landed roughly on his back, incidentally tripping up three of his fellows as they rounded the corner behind him.

"Move!" Shay roared from up ahead of them, shoving line cooks and a sous chef from in front of her. Ron and Yori took up positions at the rear, the Japanese woman unlimbering her large warfans that shone in a more lustrous fashion than they had the last time he saw them.

"New?" Ron asked curiously as he unlimbered a collapsible staff from its holster at the small of his back.

"Lorwardian battle steel!" Yori beamed for a brief instant, before her expression darkened, "And quite capable of stopping bullets."

"Good…" Ron said, before reaching into his front pocket and pulling out four round plastic balls. He tossed them hard, such that they struck the floor just inside the arc of the kitchen double doors, and a cloud of billowing, choking gas expanded. "Wade sourced stink bombs." He elaborated easily as they followed Alfonso out of the rear entrance.

He relaxed ever so slightly when he noticed two of the SUVs had just stopped at the rear entrance, their doors open with Hendrick and the Balisteris piling in quickly. "Bolthole Four!" Yori called out to the driver, who nodded and gunned the accelerator, leaving the three bodyguards to move for the rear vehicle, even as a chorus of choking sounded as the first soldier burst into the kitchen. Shay lit up and sent a plasma blast into the man's chest as he spoke in Russian, telling Ron, "He was warning his buds to wear gas masks!"

"What the hell?" Ron asked in confusion as he followed Yori into the second SUV, Shay taking the shotgun position, "I thought these guys were just gangsters?"

"They outsourced, obviously!" Yori snapped, adding a worried sounding, "Down!"

Ron and Shay both ducked, and Yori held her warfans up and at an angle towards the back of the SUV. An instant later, a hail of bullets slammed into - and a few _through_ - the armored glass of the SUV. Luckily, the few that pierced the glass were deflected into the anti-spalling coating of the SUV's rear cargo area by Yori's fans. The armored side panels, however, held firm, even as the driver floored the accelerator. "What the hell're they thinking?" Shay snapped in impotent rage, "The deal's done and they can't accomplish shit, unle-…" Shay stopped and blinked, then began cursing in four different languages. The near panic he saw in Shay's beautiful green eyes struck a deep chord within him, and distantly, he heard the echoing screech of monkeys…

"Shego-san!" Yori snapped worriedly, snapping Ron's thoughts back to the moment, "What is it?"

"That's what they want, goddammit!" Shay snapped in sudden comprehension, pulling out her cell phone and hurriedly dialing Hendrick's number. Although her Dutch was shaky, Ron followed it easily, as well as the suddenly clearly audible voice of Hendrick. "Henry, we need to get all four of you_ out _of the city!" Her voice was strong, but held the barest hint of uncertainty.

"What's wrong, Shego?" the old man asked in concern, even as he passed her suggestion along to the driver. That's when the telltale sound of bullets striking their SUV echoed out, sounding like heavy hail in the cab. They all glanced back, seeing a few men firing from the back door of the restaurant as they turned onto a street heading in a generally northwest-southeast direction. They also saw two heavy, off road style SUVs just pulling onto the same street from the street that ran in front of the restaurant, but thankfully, those inside were not firing upon them. Shay seemed to relax slightly, when more lights pulled out behind those two vehicles, and the men that had followed them out of the restaurant dashed out into the street, one of the first trucks slowing down to pick them up.

"Bolthole Seven, Yori…" Ron nodded in agreement with Shay, suddenly having a feeling his fiancée's girlfriend was right. Yori glanced at him, but did not doubt his words. Nodding, she began tapping into her headset the new location, as well as orders to all units within the range of her transceiver to meet at Bolthole Seven. As soon as she was finished, she fished out her phone and began sending a cryptic text message with the same information to those out of range - except those watching over Hendrick's relatives - while still listening to Shay in hopes her fears were explained.

Shay did not disappoint, as her voice settled into a strong, instinctual "Someone's tryin' to start a goddamn open gangwar!" she declared in a deadly calm tone, "And I_ don't _think it's the McKelly or Proulx families! At least, not directly…"

"Supervillain?" Ron asked, suddenly seeing the connections the pale woman had made, "Or another family that could use the boost?"

"I'm not sure, Ron," Shay said consideringly, before continuing in a troubled tone, "I think a supervillain… Whether it's a supervillain that's a member of a family, or one that just wants to cause some chaos for the sake of a distraction, it seems they need the Atcherkamp and Balisteri families out of the way to do it!"

"My family…" he started, but was cut off when Yori called out softly.

"Achterkamp-san's family is safe!" Ron sagged slightly in relief, then soured as Yori continued, "Our people are evacuating them, or they're already in safehouses…"

"Whoever did this…" Vincente's voice was cold and enraged, "Is breaking many,_ many _agreements between the families, agreements established when the South American cartels went crazy!" His cold tone made the hairs on the back of Ron's neck stand up and he saw a slight shiver of worry ooze down Shay's back, as well. He strained slightly as the monkeys howled a bit louder in his backbrain, yet when he heard Vincente continue, he almost wished he hadn't, "They will not succeed, even if I have to find and take care of all of them _personally_!"

"Calmly, Vincente…" Hendrick murmured, before turning his attention back to Shay, "Shego, thank Ronald and Yori for me, and make sure those bastards behind us regret being involved!"

"Got it, Henry!" Shay growled, her eyes lighting up with an evil, almost aroused glint. She glanced back at Ron and Yori, smirking, "Wanna kick some Russian mercenary ass or stick with them?"

"Not really in the mood for ass kicking…" Ron said in his normal, goofy tone, but the anger he knew was in his eyes belied it, "But if we_ have _to… It might give Hendrick and them a better chance to get away!" He glanced between Shego, the driver and Yori before asking, "Shall we kick some ass, as Shay suggested?"

"I am_ quite _ready to, Ron-sama!" Yori agreed and the driver nodded.

"Alright, then, Ken, wasn't it?" Ron called out to the driver in Japanese, who nodded wordlessly. "After Hendrick and them turn right at the next intersection, stop us and put us sideways across the street!"

"Right!" the driver answered sharply, gunning the gas as soon as the other SUV powered around the next corner. He flicked the wheel slightly to the left, before hauling it to the right and stabbing the brakes. He countersteered the vehicle into a picture perfect slide, bringing the vehicle to a halt.

The four of them piled out of the vehicle on the left side, Yori and the Yamanouchi ninja taking position near the rear, Ron near the front. Shay, however, jumped to the top of the SUV in a single leap. "Shay," Ron called out, blinking up at her as she put on the head covering from her leg pouch, something she hadn't done over in Germany, "What the hell?"

"_You're _apparently the one in charge, Sport!" Shay laughed, lighting up her hands as two of the approaching off road SUV's slowed. Instead of attacking the slowing vehicles, she sent three balls of plasma at three of the other SUVs, managing to destroy the right front and left rear tires on two of them, but only scorching the paint on the third. "So it looks like_ I'm _the distraction today!"

"Fine, just be careful, Shay!" Ron pleaded, "I don't want to see you get hurt, hear me?"

Shay glanced down at him with a wicked grin, but deep in her fiery green eyes he saw a startled, even emotionally touched spark. "No worries, Ronnie!" she called out, then with a roaring laugh, performed a running jump off of the top of the vehicle, throwing plasma wildly about in front of her to get their enemy's attention.

_If something happens to you, Shay, Kim won't forgive me! _he thought worriedly, even as he signaled for Yori and their brother in arms to follow him into the shadows, _And I'll never forgive myself…_

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Will Du grumbled as he looked over the data he'd collected over the prior days, as well as some fresh data coming in from Amsterdam, of all places. Something Will was very, very good at was recognizing patterns, which was one of the reasons he was GJ's Second Agent. Since the resurrection of his more… Outgoing self, his ability to recognize patterns had, against all of his fears, improved. Then again, even at its best, he would not have guessed at something like the cluster-fuck happening in Amsterdam actually taking place!

Three fifths of the new, improved Team Possible in a running gun battle with former Soviet_ Spetsnaz _troopers, all over a legal contract? One that had implications for the underworld, granted, but one that had already been signed, sealed and delivered! It was just a bit too random… For either sense,_ or _chance!

Which only added to the current problem was vexing him. He saw a pattern in all of the data he was looking over, but it made little sense! Or, more accurately, the conclusion his mind was trying to draw made little sense. He knew that there were moles in GJ, but in the last few days, perhaps two dozen agents worldwide had disappeared, several in France… Gregor Novikov wasn't a surprise. He'd been under investigation as a mole for several weeks, but the fact that he was found unconscious along with several unconscious WWEE agents, with a few dead in a WWEE safehouse and the roof above where he'd been found, added to Will's feeling of being_ just _out of the loop.

Sadly, what happened to Novikov and his fellows paled in comparison to what had happened to Gemini's agents Beta Two, Epsilon and Epsilon Two had been assassinated after an attempt to extricate them from GJ's Dijon, France secret holding facility. Their bellies had been eviscerated by a single, right to left swipe of what was presumed to be a combat knife, and their heads cut almost completely off, only a small band of flesh on the front holding the head to the body.

Will, however, had a different - and far more troubling - theory, due to his fascination with history. The placement of the belly slice, and the single band of flesh left on the front of the head, harkened to the_ samurai _ritual of _seppuku_… And if a few rumors of a prison break from a Japanese penitentiary were true?

_I don't want to, just in case I'm wrong, but I should call Stoppable and share my concerns… _Will thought, frowning slightly,_ But, then, a quick call to the Kyoto office could confirm if I'm right or not… _He was just reaching for his work phone, but sighed as his personal cell phone went off. Checking the time and realizing it was about five a.m. back home, he presumed it was his father. Unfortunately, it wasn't his father, and his blood ran cold when he saw just what number it was._ That should be impossible; I was just talking to her!_

But, then, he'd had a few concerns about that for several days. His mind still worried at the issues he had with how Betty had been, for lack of a better phrase, presenting to him. He hated using such a… A _clinical _phrase, one better suited for the realms of academia and animal mating studies, but she_ had _been! He'd, quite privately, brought his concerns up with Durant, who had agreed that Betty wasn't normally as… Open with her attractions.

This added to his confusion, despite his ability to set a problem into a mental box and worry at it like someone discarding a though only to have an eureka moment later. And now, sitting in his heavily secured office, he was receiving a call from the very same woman who he was concerned about. Only… It was a private, ultra secure, nigh unknown phone and number, one of several set up in case GJ was compromised and the command staff had to go into hiding. _Sierra Golf Niner Zulu? _He asked himself in shock, barely keeping his face impassive as he noticed the four alphanumeric characters at the lower left corner of the screen.

"Hello." he sighed as he took the call, preparing to move his mouth in a different fashion to what he was actually saying. Before doing so, however, he used the tip of his shoe to press a button mounted to the underside of his desk. It activated an audible 'privacy screen' that would feed false information to anyone listening "Who the hell is this?"

"The ministry of silly walks needs a few new knights that say 'Ni!'" the voice, unmistakably Betty's, said quietly. Will blinked, as, literally, only two people knew that pass code, himself and Betty Director.

"I'm sorry, but the parrot's not dead, it's just… Resting." Will countered, the pause as important as the phrase itself, both as a part of the handshake and a way to say he was in a relatively safe speaking situation.

"No one…" Betty Director's voice paused, "Expects the…" Another pause and a sound of relief as she finished, "Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch!"

Will pursed his lips, resisting the urge to swallow nervously._ She'd just as well have declared a 'Code Omega-Zulu-One-One-One… _the half Filipino agent thought in shock. The code, the end changed to the 'Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch', was meant purely to state that GJ was compromised at its highest levels. Swallowing, unintentionally falling into the accent he'd taken pains to overcome, he whispered softly into his phone, "Betty, wha' th' holeh hell's goin' on?"

"I can't talk for long," Betty - for that's who it_ had _to be - said quickly, "My position has been compromised by someone working directly with the WWEE. She's using her position to order WWEE moles back home, in preparation for a hostile takeover of GJ forces, first in Europe and then…"

"Worl'wide." Will finished as Betty paused.

"Exactly, and I have more important information than that!" Betty snapped softly, the intensity in her voice doing nothing to lessen Will's concern, "The bitch that took my place has the body of-…" Betty was cut off by the sounds of hand to hand combat. Will heard the sickening crunch of bones, and probably joints, snapping, followed by the sickening combination of cartilage and bone grinding together as a pair of necks were snapped. "She has a Lowardian body on ice, Will!"

"Fuck…" Will, paragon of professionalism, hissed, shocking Betty into silence. Before she could say one way or the other, Will pressed, "Betty, who is it? Th' Loward'an an' th' woman in yoah place?"

"The woman in my place is Ca-…" gunfire interrupted her, the sound of her running and the scrape of clothing along brick and concrete filled Will's ear. The hackles on the back of his neck rose, and he was just about to reach out for the lower right drawer of his desk and the 'Code Zulu-Omega-Inca' button within, when Betty's breathless voice stopped him, "Meet me in Amsterdam on Sunday morning, Will! You know the spot…" The sound of a firearm discharging close to her phone, obviously hers, interrupted her. There were a few grunts, then a brief moment of silence before she whispered, "Try and get trustworthy outside assistance! Team Possible, Shego, The Upperclassmen,_ Der Uhrwerk Ritter_, the N-GJ-JTF, whoever you can get! Got me?"

"A'course, Director Director." Will said in as firm and professional a tone as he could, even though a trace of his accent was in place. An instant later, there was a crescendo of gunshots, then a sudden silence that forced the tension in his body to nearly spiral out of control. Betty Director was not only someone he trusted, but whom he had started to fall for not long before she'd accepted him as her Second Agent; an attraction he knew, even back then, was mutual. In the last few months, ever since her application to the position for GJ-UN liaison, she'd made her attraction more overt, in a suitably subtle fashion, and he'd reciprocated as subtly as he could… Now, she was fighting for her life, and he could do nothing other than sit there, acting as if he were merely receiving a phone call from an informant!

The young agent felt his heart tighten and beat as if he'd gone toe to toe with Kim Possible for an hour in a dojo. After a few eternities of that horrid silence, Betty's slightly shaky voice echoed from the earpiece of his phone. "Be careful, Basil…" Betty whispered, and Will flinched, both at her exceedingly rare use of his given first name and the emotion he detected, "They're playing for keeps."

"Ah…" he swallowed against a suddenly dry throat, "Ah will, Elisabeth, Ah promise." he promised his superior, swallowing slightly, "You 's well, y'heah?"

"I will, Basil…" Betty said softly, "I promise." Then the call ended, leaving Will to casually close the connection and sigh as if he'd just received bad news.

Will put his phone away, toeing off the sound field and sitting back in his chair, resting his elbows on its arms and his chin on his thumbs, clasping his hands together except for the steepled index fingers he tapped against his nose. He was pondering just what to do, when the intra-office messenger pinged a voice message request from the office of Betty Director.

_Perfect timing, bitch… _Will thought, making a show of sitting forward heavily and accepting the call, "Second Du."

"William." Betty said with a touch more familiarity than she should have, especially with a slightly troubled looking Durant standing so near her, "We have a problem in Amsterdam…"

"I saw the reports," Will replied, "And I was just preparing to call you and ask your permission to go in person?"

"Was that what the call in your office was about?" Betty asked in a troubled manner, her face ever so slightly pouting… Something Betty had_ never _done on the job, to Will's knowledge!

"Yes, ma'am," Will allowed a slight smile, as if he'd been caught at a simple office politics game, "Standard protocol Sierra-Sierra-Two-Three-Four-Point-Seven-Seven-Three, covering ultra secret contacts."

"I see, Will…" Only Will noticed the slight, hesitant glance of Betty's eye, as if looking at Durant's reflection to make sure Will wasn't blowing smoke, which only confirmed his suspicions. Will felt a surge of relief as Durant nodded in a slightly troubled fashion, as it was exceedingly rare for a GJ agent to declare anonymous contacts.

Will sighed, as if he understood the import of his comment, and stated, "I believe I have some… Leads, ma'am. Leads that it would only be safe for me to follow up, in Amsterdam. I can also lend my skills to the local investigators, if they request it."

"Very well, Will." Betty smiled, "Just be careful, and don't hesitate to call in back up if necessary!"

"Of course, ma'am!" Will smiled evenly, giving a start as if preparing to salute, but deciding against it. After his monitor shut off, he went about preparing for his trip, while concentrating all of his personal hate at the woman he now knew, beyond a shadow of doubt, was_ not_ Betty Director! He barely restrained himself from seething in impotent rage at the faux Betty, knowing it would only distract him if he allowed himself that luxury._ Whoever you are, _Will silently promised the woman who had been on the screen before him a moment earlier,_ I'm going to enjoy watching you rot in the deepest, darkest hole we can find for you…_

**Author's Notes**

Hey again, everyone! Again, sorry for the significant delay in this chapter, as I explained in the foreword. I hope what I have in this chapter was worth the wait, and that what I have coming up is even more so! As to the chapter proper…

Everyone always figures Shego has a romantic streak, but who'd've thought that Ron did, as well? Of course, he did have a few (usually brief) shining moment or two in the series, and in this universe, he_ did _have some help, as he implied back in Book I, while cooking dinner for Kim and Shego…

Then there's the situation Ron and Shego seem to have gotten into, from different sides of the same request. Trouble avoided them, then dropped on their heads when least expected! And now, through complete change, Kim got involved in the same thing? Oh, boy, this might not bode well…

Then Will gets a call, and he's chosen a side… But is he right, or has he been duped? And what's this? One of the two Bettys has a Lowardian on ice? Was there a survivor from the climactic battle over Middleton, or was Warmonga far from the first to visit? Seems like not everything's kosher in France…

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work. And remember: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Foreword**

Hey there, everyone! One quick note, I have enough material beta'd for just under two chapters, and hope to keep that level going 'til the end of Book II. Granted, real life often bites us all on the rear end, and with both the US Thanksgiving holiday and Christmas coming up, it might be a challenge, so we'll see! So now… On to the review replies!

Poetheather1: thanks for your review, glad you're enjoying the fic and that last chapter. As to ugly, well… Read on!

Guest: thanks for the review, and although it's a pity ya didn't sign in or name yourself, I know some people prefer to review anonymously. At any rate, yes, I believe Rufus can cook; if you remember, back in Book I of Vacation from the Norm, Rufus helped Ron in the hotel's restaurant kitchen. And, well, Ron and Shego took their suits just in case… And Kim, as will be at least explained in passing, is getting back into mission mode thinking, so even on vacation, didn't want to take the chance.

I'm glad to hear that the descriptions aren't bogging down the story; that's something I always worry about, and it's nice to hear that I'm doin' it right! And, yes, Shego/Shay's conflict with her self doubts and past failings are, indeed, explored in this 'Book' of "Vacation from the Norm"… As is Kim's fight against her own…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"So it really_ isn't _all that different than me asking Big Daddy Brotherson for help a couple years back." Kim said after a pause, adding, "Well, in reverse, anyway!" After suffering the frustration of listening to Hirotaka give orders in Japanese, a language she was essentially unfamiliar with, he'd taken a few minutes to explain the situation to her. She had been staring at him with some incredulity after finding out what, exactly, Yamanouchi had been doing, and why they'd hedged their bets by asking Ron to accompany them. And, apparently, Shay had been asked by one of the families to help out, ironically on the same side as Yamanouchi, to clear up one last debt she owed from her time as a villainess._ At least if it's really an operation supported by GJ, she won't have to worry about violating her pardon! _The red-head thought, trying to find at least some positive light in the situation.

Shaking her head, she sighed, a bit troubled that her fiancé and lover hadn't included her. She knew that their driving concern had been to keep her relaxed and in 'vacation mode'. But she suspected they also worried that her hesitation, her… Anxiety, as she'd called it before the situation with Professor Kimpinski two weeks earlier, might cause problems. Had she been asked earlier in the day, she probably would have agreed, but… She'd so easily fallen back into her old mission thought process. It had been Ron who had suggested taking the mission outfits on the vacation, a bit of just in case thinking that had paid off. And just that morning, she hadn't even thought about putting her own mission clothing on under her regular clothes, and taking her mission gear wit her, she'd just done it! Much like she'd always had some mission clothing and gear with her almost at all times while she was in high school…

Then, after spying Hirotaka and talking to him, she'd so easily fallen back into her old 'mission mode'… She couldn't help but feel that, for the first time in months, she was feeling far, far more confident than she had. And not just in reference to their last, mutual mission in Germany. In point of fact… She frankly felt better than she had during_ any _of Team Possible's missions since the first month at GCU! Seeing Hirotaka was troubled, she shrugged and smiled at him, "Hey, I_ told _you Team Possible's worked with at least one member of the underworld in the past!"

"It is still a surprise, Kim-sama." Hirotaka murmured quietly, then looked up sharply as the driver let out a startled exclamation, just before the vehicle lurched violently from an impact to the right rear.

"Oh, you've_ got _to be_ kidding _me!" Kim snapped as the van lurched to the right, then left around traffic in an attempt to ditch what was apparently a vehicle trying to run them off the road, "Don't tell me these people are stupid enough to attack us on a crowded street?" Hirotaka, now dressed in a proper_ shinobi shōzoku_, leaned down and forward enough to glance into the driver's side mirror, shrugging noncommittally as he watched for their pursuers. "I thought they were just going to follow us?"

"I am afraid they have decided otherwise after we almost lost them!" Hirotaka growled as he turned towards the rear door, almost stumbling as the van was struck a second time on the opposite side, "And as much as we planned for such a situation, it was considered quite unlikely!" He managed to grasp the rear door's handle and crack it open slightly, only to close it as he saw a suppressed assault rifle angle towards him.

"By who?" Kim snapped back, helping Takumi, the youngest member of the group who had fallen with three other ninja after the second hit, to his feet. She almost literally bit her tongue when she heard the rapid pinging on the back of the truck, and the softened, but still rapid snaps of the suppressed assault rifle.

"Global Justice!" Hirotaka answered as he tied himself off with a rope, attaching the other end to a cargo anchor near the rear door. As soon as the firing paused, he shoved himself out of the rear door and onto the hood of the pursuing vehicle. He steadied himself and dropped into a low, stable stance, almost laughing as the man with the assault rifle cursed, fumbling to reload the firearm with the driver's sudden attempts to shake the ninja. Seeing that it was not likely, he let his rifle fall to its carrying strap and reached for his sidearm, even as Hirotaka drew his katana.

The Russian driver was good, but not quite good enough to shake the unexpected passenger. As such, the blow to the tire struck true and the tire shredded itself against the blade. Kim, seizing the opportunity provided, tossed one of Wade's stink balls at the man hanging out of the open passenger window of the SUV. The stink ball struck the Russian's slung assault rifle, the greenish miasma flowed up and over the man's face. Fortune smiled upon Kim, because while half of the fumes flowed around the gunman to trail behind the vehicle, the gunman's body and its position on the window allowed the other half to flow into the vehicle.

The effects were nearly immediate, making all of the men in the vehicle choke and retch. The driver attempted to put a gas mask on, but was overcome by the horrible stench. He lurched forward, accidentally slamming the truck into a lower gear, stalling the engine and making the vehicle lurch to a halt in short order.

Hirotaka had just jumped free when the SUV lurched, and managed to pull himself back into the van and close the door before the other pursuing SUV could get a clear line of sight. The driver and Kim both crowed in triumph the driver adding, "That's one down!" in English. She immediately swerved into an alleyway, narrowly avoiding walls and the second SUV, which plowed into a meter thick lightpole base a few meters past the alleyway's entrance.

"That's two!" Kim cried as she chanced opening the rear door enough to glance out.

"Good!" Hirotaka nodded. He then turned to the driver, speaking in rapid fire Japanese, before pulling his cell phone out and reading a text he'd received.

"Hai, Hirotaka-sensei!" the driver answered, and Kim ground her teeth in frustration. She knew that the ninja needed to speak in Japanese for the more complex orders, as it was their native tongue, but she wanted to know just what was going on!

A few seconds later, Hirotaka let out a string of harsh sounding Japanese, before slipping his phone back into its pouch. Kim was certain the words were curses due to the blushing reaction of the teen she'd helped to his feet, and she smirked slightly. "Trouble, Hiro?" she asked, earning a slight wince from a few of the ninja present.

"Hai." Hirotaka sighed, pursing his lips, "Yori-chan sent a text a moment before we were attacked. She said that she, Shego-san, Ron-sama and Ken-kohai are stopping to divert some of the men following our charges, leaving their men, Shizuru-san and Kazuo-kun, and the six Yamanouchi with them, for protection."

"Shouldn't that be enough?" Kim asked uncertainly, drawing a worried glance from the tall Japanese man. Shrugging slightly, she added, "I mean, yeah, these guys're using firearms, but they don't seem to be gangsters…"

"Hirotaka-sempai and I can confirm they are mercenaries, Kimberly-sama," Takumi murmured, "He recognized two, and I recognized two others from surveillance Yamanouchi performed for the Japanese government last month. We are uncertain why they were hired, but we do not think that capture is their goal…"

The information congealed in Kim's consciousness, and her eyes widened in sudden, horrified comprehension. "Whoever hired them is trying to start an open gang war, like the cartels in Mexico near the turn of the century." Kim said with a certainty that startled Takumi, who was the second in command of the group despite his age. The younger ninja glanced at Hirotaka, who nodded as Kim pursed her lips, "One of the courses I took over the summer was a social studies class for the criminal sciences major… One of the things we studied was the more violent cartels that were taken out in the nineties. La Federación was the last cartel in Mexico, for example, and they got their power by starting a war in a similar manner by using former FARC rebels to kill off the heads of competing cartels. In the end, after the Mexican Army had driven them into an untenable position, an assault force consisting of Global Justice and US Army Spec Ops combined team finally… Ended them."

"I came to that conclusion as well." Hirotaka murmured, nodding in agreement, "And using Russian mercenaries, dressed like Russian mafia to point a fing-…"

His phone ringing stopped him, and he immediately answered it with a tense, "Hai?" He apparently wasn't given a chance to speak further and Kim felt a vague sense of worry as Hirotaka's face went tense, then outright fearful. After a moment, in which the van hurtled across two more main streets through an alleyway to avoid Amsterdam police, he spoke with clear, concise English, "I have Kim-sama with me, Shego-san! She will be able to help more than I!" Hiro turned to the driver and spoke in rapid fire Japanese, then glanced back at Kim, "My apologies, Kim-sama, but you need to speak to Shego-san…"

"What?" Kim asked tensely as she grabbed the phone. Receiving no answer from Hirotaka, she turned her attention to the phone, "What's the sitch, Sheegs?"

"Kimmie?" Shay sounded as if she were about to ask Kim several questions, "I'll ask what the hell you're doing there later, but I need your help with Ron,_ now_!"

"What's wrong?" Kim asked, sudden dread pooling in her gut at the implication of Shay's words.

"Ron's about to go super-ape like he did against the mean and greens!" Shay snapped, "Something about Gemini finding Monkey Fist's last notes and reading something about a weapon called 'The Han'…" There was a pause, Kim drawing a breath to speak when she screamed, "Ron, no! Stay here with us, dammit!"

"No!" Kim snapped, the ball of dread in her stomach exploding into sickened panic as she reached for her wrist Kimmunicator…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

The staccato snap of suppressed automatic rifles startled Ron, who immediately looked to Shay's position next to the black BMW SUV they'd so recently evacuated. What he saw amazed him; she'd crouched low and brought about a huge plasma ball which intercepted most of the bullets before they could strike her. Those that didn't vaporize were turned into slag that bounced harmlessly off of her suited frame or into the heavily armored side of the vehicle. Ron also knew this action not-so-incidentally protected the surrounding civilians from stray bullets, something he was quite thankful for.

"Let's get around 'em and take 'em out!" Ron snapped, earning a nod from Yori and Ken, "And try and get Hiro here ASAP!" He glanced up and to the northwest as he heard the sound of a helicopter, but dismissed it when he couldn't find it after a few seconds of visual searching._ Head in the game, Ron! _He berated himself lightly,_ Other things to worry about right now!_

With that, the three ninja fell into motion, Yori following Ken to their right, Ron slipping to the left. He jumped slightly when a lightly armed Russian slipped up literally right in front of him, but paid the sneaking blond no mind._ Booyah, ninja training! _Ron cheered himself, before lashing out with a simple, slightly cross body uppercut. It struck the slightly taller, black haired man perfectly behind the ear at the front of the temporal bone, knocking the man unconscious.

Ron quickly made his way along the line of cars parked along the street, glad that the few pedestrians he'd seen had hidden in shops or around the nearest corner._ I've only been shot at three times in my life before and none of those were on Team Possible missions! _he griped to himself as he surveyed the scene from a better vantage point. Shay had yet to unleash more plasma than she already had, but at least when she'd taken out their SUV's tires, she'd at least lessened the likelihood of more than a few people shooting at her from cover. There were two others using the big Russian built SUVs - which he thought looked kind of like the US military's Humvee - as cover, while forcing Shay to keep her position. Every time she moved, he'd open up once again, and one of his compatriots kept a loaded weapon at the ready, and they'd switch off as ammunition ran out in each weapon.

_Time to end that! _Ron though, leaping into action. Keeping himself low, he dashed upon them. The man that wasn't firing him caught sight of him, but it was too late to react. Ron dove into the man firing upon Shay with a shoulder block that would've made Steve Barkin shed a tear of pride. Even as well executed as the block was, Ron felt as if he'd charged headlong into a brick wall.

Fortunately, the man folded like any lineman caught off guard, his assault rifle flying well away from him. The other was borne to the ground by the combined weight of Ron and the Russian's compatriot. Seeing his advantage, the blond hurriedly kicked out at the man's unprotected head. The man was knocked unconscious, and Ron looked around, barking in Japanese, "Yori, Ken, did you see where their buddies went?"

"Not beyond this one!" Ken shouted, finally landing a blow that knocked his opponent unconscious. Ron nodded, then felt the still conscious mercenary he'd first tackled moving as he caught his breath. Ron's face went somewhat livid and he hammered several lightning-fast punches into the man that had been firing upon Shay, his mouth moving in silent curses towards the man as he continued for several punches after the man was out. He almost jumped when he heard the former thief's plasma drop, and he glanced over to see her breathing hard, but otherwise unharmed.

"They all seem to have slipped back down the street, Ron-sama!" Yori called in Japanese after zip tying the three opponents she'd felled, nodding towards where several knots of pedestrians were staring at a storefront from behind cover.

"Then let's get after them," Ron said firmly, glancing at Shay, "You have a way up that building?"

"Yes I do!" she smirked, speaking in Japanese as well and holding up her left wrist and showing off a dark green, deep charcoal gray and silver version of the Kimmunicator, "Nerdlinger sent me one with that brain fix they sent over for Kimmie! And I'd be able to get up there even without it!"

"Good!" Ron pointed at Yori and Shay, "You two, up the buildings here, try and cut 'em off!" He glanced at Ken, "You're with me, we'll try and flush 'em to the ladies!"

"Hai!" Ken and Yori said in unison, Ken dashing to follow Ron towards the storefront, Yori already jumping towards the building's front.

Shay easily caught up to her and grabbed her around the waist, saying, "Hold on!" before sending the grapnel flying in a shot that would have done Kim proud. As the grapnel let out a clink upon connecting, she jerked her wrist in a certain quick pattern, causing the grapnel's ultra powerful winch to pull them up.

Ron and Ken, meanwhile, dashed towards the storefront, being careful to use cover, least the mercenaries catch them off guard. Glancing in, they noticed that the front was empty, which started the monkeys, who had been somewhat quiet since leaving the SUV, to chittering in Ron's head.

"Ron-sama…" Ken said softly, his expression troubled, "They are not acting as mercenaries should…"

"Really?" Ron asked, remembering that Shego - and indeed most henchmen - tended to stay and fight. He'd always equated them to, essentially, mercenaries, so he was confused by Ken's comment.

"Hai," Ken nodded, looking around in sudden worry, "Should they not have tried to escape and rejoin their fellows, instead of staying long enough to draw us after them?"

"Good poi-…" Ron started, then saw a helicopter he'd heard a few moments earlier dropping towards a roof another thirty or forty meters down the street. He glanced at Ken, shrugging, "Maybe they already had a ride inbound?"

"Good point!" Ken seemed slightly relieved, even chuckling at his use of Ron's cut off phrase, drawing a matching chuckle from Ron. He then pointed up, "The ladies will need backup!"

"Yup!" Ron said, angling his own wrist mounted grapnel towards the roof, even as Ken unlimbered his own ascension tool. The slightly older ninja revealed something that looked much like a_ kusarigama_, but instead of a sickle, it had a short, three barbed hook at the end, much like a traditional grapnel done smaller. Out of the center of the three hooks was a spike similar to a _kunai_, but he nonetheless seemed quite adept at its use as a grapnel. Ron honestly hoped his fellow ninja would not be forced to use it as a weapon.

The two of them were upon the roof in a few scant seconds, and were almost surprised to see that, indeed, their quarry was heading towards the helicopter, which hovered barely two meters off of a nearby roof. He also noticed Shay and Yori less than five meters away, the two ladies concentrating on their targets with professional aplomb, Yori somewhat in the lead._ This is going too good… _Ron thought,_ The other shoe's bound to drop any moment! _His thought, one he was prepared to dismiss as his normal paranoia, was given strength as something was tossed out of the helicopter.

Whatever was dropped was out of Yori and Shay'd line of sight due to a heavily built stairwell exit enclosure. Ron knew, in that moment, that the shoe he'd just worried about was dropping, as the helicopter was already powering away, leaving the apparent mercenaries behind. "_Get down_!" he hollered as he recognized what had been dropped: one of the former Professor Dementor's focused sound blasters…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"I can't really thank ya enough, Miss Possible!" the wizened old Native American murmured to Joss as he looked upon his once again free roaming cattle, wiping his brow with an old red handkerchief with an intricate pattern sewn in white.

"No big!" Joss assured him, chuckling as she looked at her boyfriend with a huge grin. They'd just helped prevent almost one hundred and twenty head of prize worthy cattle from being rustled by super-high tech cattle thieves from a ranch near Billings, Montana. "But, honestly, it was more Felix than me, Mr. Red Eagle!"

"Horseshit!" Eli Red Eagle chuckled, earning a blush from Felix and a chuckle from Joss, "I saw you cuttin' away at that horse trailer while yer friend there positioned the ramp…"

"Yeah, but he found 'em." Joss countered, winking at the older man and tapping her nose, "Sometimes, it takes a mix of technology and good old senses to do the job!"

"Well, I'm grateful!" the old man chuckled, cocking his head slightly at the teen heroine, "Y'sure I can't pay ya back somehow?"

"Tell ya what…" Joss spoke with a suddenly considering tone, "When ya send some of 'em up for slaughter, send my daddy a side of beef, and we'll call it even!"

"Sure thing, there, Miss Possible!" the old man said, spitting into his hand and holding it out for a quick shake. Joss replicated the move and shook his hand back, before saying her goodbyes and walking over to Felix, a huge grin on her face.

"You did_ awesome_, Wings!" she crowed as she sat in his lap, giving him a sharp buss on the cheek, "Though I hope your nose can recover…"

"Eh, it's not so bad when ya get used to it." Felix joked back, scrunching his nose at the still lingering smell of one hundred and twenty bulls and steers in a crowded trailer. "Besides, we've got a half hour before Wade's ride can get here, and I saw a nice, secluded spot over near that butte…"

"Oh?" Joss raised an eyebrow, snuggling up a little closer to him and touching their foreheads together as he ran his fingers along the slightly exposed flesh between her shirt and jeans, "And?"

"Well…" Felix smirked slightly, "The Clark's Fork slows down near that butte and has a nice, secluded set of woods…"

"Mmm-hmmm?" Joss prodded as Felix stopped speaking but moved one of his teasing hands to her side.

Leaning forward slightly, he kissed it lightly before murmuring, "And I think it'd be perfect for a bit of calming you down…"

"I_ am _a little shaky…" Joss admitted, the mild adrenaline rush after the mission nothing compared to the rush after dealing with Adrena Lynn and McTwist, but nonetheless there. The thought of Lynn, her first_ real _nemesis, drew her thoughts to her cousin, Kim Possible, and what the older Possible was going through… And the fact that Kim had hooked up to the woman many others had considered her nemesis. She felt a vague sense of worry about how the world would react to their upcoming revelation… She hoped it would be positive, but…

"You okay, Joss?" Felix asked softly as she stiffened in worry, drawing her attention from her thoughts to his face.

"Hmmm?" she asked, confusion in her face for a moment. Seeing the worry in his eyes, she smiled slightly in embarrassment, before snuggling up under his chin, her tone troubled when she spoke again, "I'm fine, just… Worried 'bout Cousin Kim and Ron, even Shego, now…" She pursed her lips, and Felix could feel the intensity of her troubled frown even though she wasn't looking at him, "I got called by Summer Gale today…"

"Oh?" Felix asked, as if it were news to him. He knew she was going to get the call, but not when, so he was somewhat surprised by the information. "About the interview with those three?"

"Yeah…" Joss nodded, sighing as Felix decided to get going, and lifted them off.

After getting to an altitude of about one hundred and fifty feet, and angling towards the location he'd mentioned earlier, he prodded gently, "Does it bother you?"

"What's that?" Joss asked softly, her voice barely audible over the rushing wind and the rockets pushing the chair forward, "The three of 'em's relationship? That they're comin' out like that? Or that they_ had _to 'cause'a Tripe?"

"Um…" Felix murmured questioningly, a slight chuckle, "All of the above?"

"In order," Joss chuckled back, but the tone was somewhat fragile, "Not really, a bit and_ fuck _yes!" Felix winced, as, despite being freer with her language than most people Felix knew, she rarely used that particular curse. "I mean… It's their life, and yeah, they're public figures 'n' all, but… They shouldn' hav't' deal with comin' out b'fore their ready, y'know?"

"I know, Joss…" Felix murmured, kissing the side of her head as he came in for a landing, just off of Eli Red Eagle's property, "But, in the end, it's their choice to come out in that fashion, and knowing Kim?" He chuckled slightly as she stood up and stretched her legs, watching her well muscled rear bunch up and relax with unfeigned appreciation. "Besides, I kinda think it's better they're doing it_ this _way instead of something like, well… The web site or similar, know what I mean?"

"True…" Joss sighed a chuckle out, adding, "But they're gonna 'nounce Shego 's part'a Team Possible Alpha later t'day, an' that's only a couple days b'fore the interview's on TV!"

"Better now than after the interview," Felix quipped with a laugh, "And we're_ officially _Team Possible Bravo at the same time, right?"

"Yeah…" Joss nodded, then turned a thankful, loving gaze on him, slowly making her way back to where he sat. "Thanks, Wings… I was kinda startin' to feel worthless t' Cousin Kim with the shit Tripe tried to throw at her on that show of hers…"

"You're never useless, Joss…" Felix assured her, reaching up to cup her face gently in his palms, "_Ever_, got it?

"Thanks…" Joss murmured again, kissing his hands, then holding onto them as she slowly dropped to a squat… Then to her knees in front of him.

"Joss?" Felix gulped as she began to trace his shirt where it was stuffed into his pants, a blush rising up his throat towards his face.

"I, um… I wanna do somethin', well… A little different than we've_ been _doin'?" Joss smiled up at him, a light blush staining her cheeks, "An', hones'ly, I_ don' _wanna push things here by askin', but, um…" She dropped her face with a giggle as Felix's blush rapidly crossed his face and darkened alarmingly, "I… I really like to, y'know…" She glanced at his crotch, which was responding to her shy display quite readily, "I, well… I like… Actually, I_ love _givin' head… An' I wanna do sometin' more than_ jus'_makin' out…"

"Um, well, I…" Felix gulped audibly, finally croaking out, "Y… You sure you wanna, Joss?"

"Mmm-hmmm…" she felt her own blush rising, something that hadn't happened since she'd first seen a naked man on the internet a few years earlier. Hell, when she'd first tried giving head, she hadn't blushed as much as she was at that moment, and yet, here she was, blushing like a virgin… Hell, the accent she normally took pains to lessen was back in full force!_ God, what this man does to me! _she thought with a huge smile, finally looking up at him and whispering, "If you think you're ready for me to, just say so… Jus'… Y'gotta un'erstan', I'd… I'd_ love _t' do it t'ya… I know it's kinna, well… Prob'ly kinna weird, I guess?" She felt her blush deepen as she glanced down at the rapidly bulging pants scant inches from her fact, and back up to his face once again, before continuing, "Y'really had my motor runnin' after all'a that, what ya said, I mean… An' I_ really _wanna get yours goin', too, Baby…"

"I, um…" Felix thought about hedging again, but seeing Joss' deliciously responsive nipples visibly hard, despite the heavy sports bra the equally heavy cotton of her mission shirt, he couldn't help but say, "Sure…"

"Wel-…" The ringing of their Kimmunicators interrupted Joss' statement, drawing a low groan from both teens. Activating the unit on his chair, Felix gave Wade a slightly annoyed look as he answered, "What's up, Wade?"

"Sorry to interrupt whatever's goin' on, guys!" Wade said with an almost panicked look on his face, "But I need you guys to head towards Billings,_ now_!"

"What's goin' on, Wade?" Joss asked, her own version of mission mode quickly settling over her face as she literally jumped into Felix's lap and began to strap in. Felix, realizing that Wade, a young man he'd never heard anyone say panicked before, was doing just that, took off and set the general course into his chair's navigation computer. He handed Joss one of the two facemasks the chair was equipped with, then donned his own as she put hers in place.

"Gemini's after Ron's parents and Hana," Wade said, fingers literally flying across his keyboard, "and it'd be a simple matter to find out they're in Billings for some actuarial dinner!"

"Where at?" Felix asked, but the question was unnecessary as he saw Wade's location information already programming itself into his chair, "Okay, then, are we dealing with WWEE goons?"

"Led by Agent Delta!" Wade grumbled distractedly.

"Wait…" Joss hissed, "Wait, as in that Tripe bitch?"

"She 'escaped' earlier today…" Wade said in the same grumbling tone, "And from what I can see, it_ has _to have been an inside job…"

"So why in the world are they after the Stoppables?" Felix asked tightly, worry for his best friend's parents and little sister clouding his normal calm demeanor.

"I don't know, exactly…" Wade said, "But Kim called me a minute ago…" He paused to put his full attention to typing something into his computer, his fingers moving in a literal blur, before continuing, "I took the time between then and now to check a few things out, that's why I know Gamma escaped…" Wade looked back at the screen, "They're in the process of breaking into Ron's place, I've got a couple Wadebots on the way and the Tweebs'll help out, but…"

"They'll prob'ly find out wha' they need b'fore ya can get there…" Joss concluded, which a downcast Wade nodded to, "Hey, non'a that, Wade! Y'couldn't've known, got it?"

"Yeah…" Felix agreed, drawing the teen computer master's eyes back to them, "I'm sure everyone else will be happy to know we're on protection duty, right?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Wade sighed, shaking his head to get rid of at least some of the worry clouding his judgement, "It's just… When Kim called me, she was freaking out, worrying about Hana and the Stoppables…" Wade's eyes widened in worry, "And she said something about Ron going Monkey Master, too!" Wade's face paled as he saw something on his screen, and he swallowed, "Oh, God… It's happening near a residential area of Amsterdam!"

"Then tell her to tell him we'll keep his parents safe, Wade!" Felix said, "that might calm him down!"

"We c'n hope!" Joss said, "Wade, we're fifteen from th' Stopp'ble's, we'll contact ya 's soon 's we get there, 'kay?"

"Okay," Wade gulped and winced, "Just… Just get there as soon as you can, guys…"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay heard Ron's warning and immediately raised a double fist of plasma, launching it forwards just as something on the other side of the stairwell exit enclosure made a loud, basso punching sound. She saw the air distorting from whatever it was, and the exit enclosure turning into so much shrapnel. She knew immediately that her double fist of plasma would be useless in stopping whatever it was, but she still hoped her plasma slowed it, or at least lessened the impact when it struck her!

A short instant later, she knew it had, and that her action had quite likely saved Yori's life. Her plasma, a mix of heat and concussion, destabilized the edge of the quasi-spherical mass of sound, and it merely knocked the younger woman off of her feet and into unconsciousness, as opposed to likely turning her insides into pulp.

It also helped that the shot had only been generally aimed at them, and the remainder of the sound dissipated less than twenty feet after passing Shay's position._ What the hell was that? _Shay screamed in her mind as she felt herself swimming between light and darkness, her right eardrum ruptured and blood seeping from her nose.

"Shay!" Ron screamed and the pale woman would have sworn on a stack of holy books that there were monkeys screaming with his voice.

_That can't be good, can it? _she wondered, feeling her power already working to repair the relatively light damage she'd suffered. Then she remembered the last time she heard monkeys screaming in Ron's voice and her blood ran cold.

"I have Yori-sensei, Ron-sama!" Ken yelled, and Shay felt herself being picked up by a blur of blond hair, black and blue uniform, and faint trails of smoky, blue power. She wanted to retch as she went up over his shoulder and her abused balance system was thrown for a loop. She barely caught herself before the rather expensive prime rib dinner became the new 'in thing' in ninja evening wear. She was shocked when Ron grabbed Ken be the back of his _shinobi shōzoku _and leapt across the four meter gap between the building they'd been on and one to the east… All the while bearing her weight, Ken's weight and Yori's.

"Oh, _that _hurt!" Shay moaned loudly as they landed, dropping below the level of the false roofline that hid a middling size, residential air conditioning unit from being seen on the street. She coughed a couple times, still fighting to keep her food down, and muttered a little bit more strongly, "Wha'th'hell_ was _that?"

"That was one of_ Dementor's _mad sciency things!" The blond hissed, before looking Shay over, "Sonic destructa-something-or-another…"

Shay blinked as she saw the rage bubbling bubbling up deep in his eyes, despite the control he was trying to hold over it. She knew he saw the blood leaking from her ear, nose and corner of her mouth, and knew he was losing the battle with his rage when he shook his head harshly… And she heard the enraged screeching of monkeys starting to float audibly through the air._ Oh, shit… _she thought, before murmuring aloud, "Calm down, Ronnie…"

Ron stared at her for a moment, before shaking his head again, and the monkey's screams lessened. Finally, he nodded at her before turning to Ken, asking, "How's Yori?"

"Unconscious, but she otherwise appears unhurt…" the ninja said softly, glancing over the top of the false wall to spy their foes, who were just walking through the dust created by the sonic weapon's destructive blast. He turned back slowly, so as not to draw their attention and whispered, "They did not see where we went…"

"Well," Ron grunted, "they're about to find out where_ I _went!" With that, he bunched his legs up under him in preparation for a leap that would take him back across the gap, when Shay's hand grasped his shoulder.

"Wait for me to recover," Shay hissed, glancing at Ken, who seemed ready to follow Ron, "Both of you!"

"Shay," Ron said, calming slightly as he felt the strength in her hand as she squeezed his shoulder, "Watch over Yori 'til she wakes up and hook back up with us…"

"And what happens if you go full monkey, huh?" Shay's tone was more than a little worried, "I_ saw _you during the invasion, Ron! We_ both _know what could happen if you lose it in the middle of a city, hell, in the middle of a_ residential _area!" Ron blinked and she pushed her brief advantage of his attention, "I know you're about to freak out and I know_ why_… You're about to do the same for me that you did for Kimmie during the invasion, but I'm_ fine_, okay?" Ron half nodded at her, drawing a brief, only slightly pained smile, "And Yori's gonna be fine, too…"

Ron gave her a look as if he were starting to understand what she was worried about. He sat back on his rear gently, crossing his legs and leaning against the false wall before closing his eyes and taking several deep breaths, his lips murmuring as if he were speaking a mantra. He was still tense, and Shay took a breath, making sure to keep her voice calm. "There's more to it than that, though, Ron…" she murmured softly, "I can hear the cops in the area, and that damn thing's gonna have 'em bringing out the big guns! And while Amsterdam is a signatory to the UN's supervillain mandate, they still treat supervillains and their henchmen as terrorists, which means The Netherland's equivalent of SWAT's gonna be brought out!"

Ron's closed eyes didn't see her shrugs, but it was plain in her voice as she continued, "I don't wanna see you shot at 'cause they think_ you're _the one responsible, 'kay? Their equivalent to SWAT here isn't_ just _trained cops, but they have actual members of the military mixed in." Ron nodded, finally comprehending the full import of her worries and the sounds of monkeys fell from their screeching cacophony of rage to an angry, but controlled screech and growl chorus when he let out a quiet, half moaning sigh. Shay smiled in relief and reached out to grasp his shoulder.

She felt his muscles relaxing a bit and let out a breath she'd been holding, catching Ken doing the same thing out of the corner of her eyes and realized the young man had been prepared to go with Ron to try and control him. She smirked as a realization struck her, a realization that had the not-quite-Shay voice screaming negative invectives at her,_ I'm glad I have the experience in calming down a man… _she almost chuckled aloud, and a brief sense of awe slipped through her mind,_ But_ damned _if he's not a_ lot _harder to calm down when he's mad than Harley ever was! _Her observation cause a burst of enraged ranting in the back of her mind, but the very nonsensical manner of the familiar voice allowed her to ignore it.

Before the voice could calm down enough to counter her comment with words, Ron opened his eyes. There was a faintly visible ring of blue glowing around the edges of his eyes, but his eyes were far, far calmer, for which Shay was thankful. "You good, Sport?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Ron murmured, "I got this…" After another deep breath, he spoke in a measured manner, "Shay, I'm_ asking _you to stay here with Yori 'til she wakes up. Ken and I'll get over there, one of us'll destroy the sonic thingamabob and we'll keep 'em busy 'til Hiro can get here."

"Ron…" Shay started, but the blond interrupted her.

"Hey, master of distraction and a real ninja here," Ron smiled, "we'll be good!"

"You'd better!" Shay snapped, grabbing his uniform by the neck and pulling him close, "And get your goddamn head covering on!" With that said, she leaned in and planted a deep, intense kiss to his lips. It was different than the one she'd given him in Germany on the train, or the few they'd shared while mutually loving Kim or the exceedingly rare ones she'd given him outside of those situations. It was sure, confident, assertive and open. There was the briefest of hints of more to kiss than there had been with the others, but it was still guarded, hidden… And, even with that, the kiss nonetheless left Ron breathless as she pulled away, smirking at him. "There's some of that luck back!" she half chuckled, "Just in case, Distraction Boy!"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"What are we doing here, Little Sister?" Sheldon 'Gemini' Director groused, feeling uncomfortable walking openly with Betty Director so near the GJ EU headquarters building. Granted, his little sister was behind him, making sure his back was protected, and they wore superior disguises, thanks to the man walking ahead of them, who was Betty's suggestion for Agent Alpha. The man not only had superior martial skills, which he was imparting to the WWEE's rank and file with aplomb, but he was a master of disguise. Gemini had flinched at least once upon seeing his own reflection, not recognizing the portly blond man with spectacles and wearing a cheap tweed suit.

Neither did he recognize Betty, now a full red-head with a slim figure, acne scars and gaudy ear and facial piercings. Said woman tittered, being fully in her role, before whispering to him, "You'll see in a minute, Shelly…" she promised, "Stop there, Alpha."

Agent Alpha paused and followed Betty's direction to turn down an alleyway. It was barely wide enough to allow Gemini's huge shoulders to pass through, and he made sure to keep Agent Alpha in front of him, while Betty again brought up the rear. He may like the man's work, but he would be some time in coming to trust the Asian fully. At least Alpha seemed as clueless as to their ultimate destination as he was.

When they came to a small alcove, Betty slid ahead of him and slipped a complex looking electronic key from her hair and opened a hidden door. Gemini raised an eyebrow, as he hadn't even seen the keyhole. She led them into a small, two meter by three meter by four meter tall room, which began to descend after as she'd not only closed and locked the door, but removed the key and stood back. "Ten seconds to our floor and a thirty meter hallway, Shelly." she murmured as Gemini began to fidget, leaning into him and craning her neck to plant a gentle kiss to his chin, "Promise that you'll love it almost as much as you love me…"

"I'm_ sincerely _intrigued now…" Gemini murmured, the truth of his statement plain in his eye. Betty smiled mysteriously and pulled away as the elevator stopped. She unlocked another door with the same key, and as soon as the door opened, a thick mist began to coalesce at their feet. The temperature difference seemed to be the cause, as the elevator was similar to the five and a half degrees Celsius of the surface, while the air at the door was nearly thirty five degrees Celsius!

"What's going on, Betty?" Gemini snapped, not liking something about the feel of the situation.

"This way, Shelly…" Betty drew out, the playful tone making Alpha and Gemini share a concerned glance, "The perfect weapon to break the will of Team Possible -_ especially _Ron Stoppable - is waiting for us at the end of this hallway… Waiting patiently, I might add!"

"This tool is a person, is it not?" Agent Alpha's voice was far younger than his actions would indicate, but sure, certain.

"Told you he's sharp, Shelly…" Betty chuckled, sounding more like the woman Gemini was used to hearing, allowing him to relax somewhat. "In fact… She's someone that will not only shock Stoppable to the bone… But she should stop him in his tracks, at least long enough to contain him!" Betty paused as she entered the room and turned the lights on, allowing both men to gaze upon the glory of her 'weapon'. And stare they did, in a dumbfounded mix of awe, horror and quickly dawning comprehension, "Gentlemen… Princess of the House of Warkryer, First Daughter to the Lord Emperor of the Lorwardian Empire and Fallen Daughter of Peacemakr, Blood Sworn of the mad warrior Warhok." Glancing back at the huge, green skinned woman, she chuckled darkly, "Warmonga of Lowardia!"

The woman warrior was standing at perfect attention, her eyes staring ahead and what would be a precise fifteen centimeters above a similarly tall Lowardian's head. She wore a somewhat abbreviated version of her old suit, as if it had been torn open and repaired, as opposed to replaced, revealing her muscular, if scarred abdominal muscles. Her broad shoulders were held back and at a precise parade attention position, despite her right shoulder and arm being cybertronic prosthetics. Her right eye had been replaced, the reason for the replacement obvious with the ugly, deep scar that ran from her chin, up her face and through the eye socket. Her legs from about mid-thigh down were also prosthetics, though equally as muscular in appearance as they'd once been.

Gemini could feel Agent Alpha tense as if preparing for a strike from the alien against either Gemini or himself, but Gemini's laugh caused him to pause in mid movement. Gemini glanced at his sister, then the huge alien and began to laugh all the harder, in comprehension of just how low his sister had come from her former heights… All for him. "Mind controlled, my dear sister?"

"Of course, Big Brother! It's part of her choker, and no one will be the wiser!" Betty almost crowed in delight, "And… I have one that will work on Stoppable as well… Once we stop him with his own weapon, this 'Han' that Monkey Fist ranted of in his diary, we will use_ her_," she pointed at the dull eyed Lorwardian, "to dumbfound him into a pile of panicked idiocy! Then he will be an easy target for our_ own _brand of mind control…" Gemini looked at her with shock in his eye, as if he'd never expected such… Viciousness from his younger sister. Then she took a few slow, almost shy steps towards him, lifting her face towards his and whispering, "All for you, Love…" With that simple declaration, Gemini understood why his sister was doing it. For him… For the love he'd felt for her for… Years… Which she now shared with him.

A slow smile crossed his features as she pressed her body into his and he began to chuckle low in his throat. "I see…" Gemini took a deep breath, letting it out in a slow, appreciative growl, "Yes, I see indeed! This, Betty… You were right, Love… This was_ well _worth taking time away from monitoring the events in Amsterdam!" He walked over to stand at her side, sliding a loving arm around her and holding her close, "Well worth it indeed…"

Gemini chuckled again as he pulled her with him as he walked up at the monstrous alien before them, his eye focusing on the wide, golden band around her neck, the one she'd worn when she'd invaded the earth. "Such a small thing…" He murmured, reaching up to flick a finger, savoring the clean ring of the metal despite it not only being worn, but the modifications done to it, "But it allows me such_ delicious _irony… I shall use those that killed my Pepe to take out Team Possible, use their most formidable weapon against what will be left of GJ… And then…"

"The world…" Betty sighed, her tone slightly troubled, but supportive nonetheless.

"Yes, Love…" Gemini sighed softly, hugging his sister closer to him, "Trust me, Love… I will not destroy the world to take it… In the last few weeks, you've taught me the… Folly of some of my ways. But, those that disobey me outright, or attempt to stop_ our _ascendance?"

"We'll crush, as examples…" Betty murmured, glancing up at Gemini before leaning up to kiss his cheek, "I'm with you, Big Brother…"

"Thank you, Betty…" Gemini murmured, glancing at the huge alien once again. Yes, he would have his vengeance for losing Pepe, by using one of those responsible as a simple tool… One that would gain him control of the most powerful weapon Earth had ever seen! And all thanks to his little sister… His lover, and the woman he loved above all others…

Yes, indeed, if this were any indication, his time was nigh…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Got it, Shay!" Ron breathed after a long moment, a smile slowly spreading across his face. After another moment, spent watching the complex play of emotions in her beautiful green eyes, he slid the head covering out of its stowage compartment and secured it around his face. The sounds of Amsterdam police were indeed closer, and he set his face in determination that they would not have to become involved, and risk being hurt or worse, for something that shouldn't have happened as it had. He'd just sealed his facemask around the front when one of their foes calling out to another. The odd familiarity of the man's voice made him pause to listen, risking a careful glance over the top of the false wall where he was crouched.

"Where_ are _they?" the man, whose voice Ron had heard in at least three villainous capers, grumbled, "They can't just disappear like that! And this wasn't supposed to_ atomize _them, just_ hurt _them!" He glanced at the device before chuckling, "Unless they're behind a brick wall or two…"

"They've gone, as I_ said _they would!" Ron was almost surprised that the man, obviously one of the mercenaries they'd seen earlier, speaking English with a very light Russian accent. He_ was _surprised that the man sounded disgusted with the situation he was in, but discarded that thought for a moment as likely unimportant. The man was a rather large, almost as tall as Steve Barkin and even more muscular. "Stoppable is a hero, not a soldier! They have fallen back to follow our original target, I'm certain!"

"And you're an idiot." The second voice belonged to an even larger man, who held himself in a manner somewhat familiar to Ron, as if ready to leap for protection at a moment's notice. The man's bearing screamed henchman, as did the American Midwest accent. "Were ya stuck with your head up your regular employer's ass when that boy saved the world? He's a goddamn_ super_hero, and our mutual boss wanted him captured, too!"

"Mutual boss?" the first man scoffed, "You're mistaken, our employers work together out of mutual benefi-…"

"Oh, I'm sorry…" the second man chuckled, angling the sonic blaster in an incidental manner that took in the first voice's men, "You still think Mikhail Moiseyev is your boss, right?"

"What?" the first man spoke in confusion, though his suspicious bearing indicated he was preparing violence upon his erstwhile colleague, "What do you mean,_ henchman_?"

"What I mean,_ former _Soviet_ Spetsnaz_…" the henchman's smile spoke volumes, "Is that_ our _boss, well, kind of took over your boss', what do you call it?_ Bratva_?" The first man's face drained of color, and the henchman chuckled darkly, "Gemini doesn't like people that disagree with him,_ especially _when there was an understanding that_ we _needed the heads of the Atcherkamp and Balisteri families_ dead_!"

With that, they heard the punching, oddly distorted whining growl of the sonic blaster, immediately followed by agonized screams from some of the mercenaries. Ron and Ken were immediately on their feet, the ninja taking a few quick jumps back to get a run at the gap. Ron, however, bunched his legs up underneath him. His legs and eyes glowed blue, and he bodily launched himself over the four meter gap between the buildings. With a scream of primal fury that melded human and monkey, Ron brought an axe kick down upon the weapon.

His kick, driven as it was by sheer rage and a bit of the MMP, landed perfectly on the device to snap it in half. Normally, Ron would have crowed to himself about dumb skill, perhaps even GJ's infamous 'Ron Factor', but he was too far gone in disgusted rage. Even at their worst, the other supervillains' henchmen hadn't been so callous, so_ cold_. He understood, this wasn't a normal situation, it was closer to organized crime than supervillainy, but these men_ supposedly _belonged to HenchCo's Henchmen's International Union, a subdivision of the International Villains and Supervillains Union.

It didn't seem to matter however, as the man who had wielded the sonic blaster immediately went for a sidearm. Ron was already a step ahead of him, a stiff legged sidekick flying towards the man's elbow. With a loud cry of pain, the man's arm flew back and away from his body, the elbow joint capsule partially ripped from the powerful strike. Ron didn't stop, immediately skipping forward and spinning, bringing a rigid knife edge strike to the man's temple.

The man dropped, unconscious, and Ron glanced around. Everything was moving in slow motion, but his vision was clear. In fact… It had expanded! He saw everything happening within his field of vision. While the information he received could have been distracting, years of playing video games and the MMP combined to make the information flow smoothly and easily.

To his right, Ken was taking on two henchmen, while dealing with one of the mercenaries who was injured…

Further to his right, four mercenaries were covering two of their fallen comrades, while at the same time, taking cover from the seemingly random strobes of green plasma flying over their heads…

Ron knew, by sound and by seeing her plasma fly, that Shay was providing covering fire to him and Ken…

He saw out of the left side of his vision, two henchmen unlimbering rifle looking devices he knew were stunball launchers…

His strange slowness of perception allowed him to dive to the roof just as Shego's covering fire struck one of the devices, causing it to explode like a grenade and sent the both men flying across the roof. This drew several curses from another one of the henchmen near where the sonic blaster had been dropped. He was yelling orders to his remaining eight subordinates to fall back to his position. Ron began to dash towards his position, but the man's sudden smile spoke of danger that Ron almost ignored. The sudden appearance of a compact electronic megaphone, the kind Kim had used in a couple of cheer routines, gave the blond pause enough for the man to speak.

"Stoppable, I'd stop and give up if I were you!" His sure, arrogant tone grated on Ron's nerves. He did pause long enough to hear the man out, given that the man's underlings had pulled back and were not firing upon them, "We have Alfonso Balisteri in our custody! You shall surrender yourself and Shego and come peacefully, or he suffers!"

Ron glanced over at Ken, who gave a minute gesture - a gesture that only those familiar with Yamanouchi teachings would understand - to keep the man talking. So Ron looked back, a questioning eyebrow raised, "And we should believe you, why, exactly?"

"You may or may not, it matters not to the WWEE!" the henchman chuckled darkly, "But you should know, even if you do not give up, we shall have the weapon that gives you your powers in our possession soon as well!"

"What're you talking about?" Ron almost laughed at the moron on the next rooftop over, "I didn't get this from some wea-…"

"No need to lie!" the man countered, "We have the last writings of Monkey Fist!" Ron felt his blood run cold at the mention of the madman that had been imprisoned in stone, wondering what information they could have gleaned from the man, "We know of The Han, that it is a weapon used by the so called Monkey Master and that you possess it! Soon enough, boy, we shall instead!"

"What?" Ron gasped as fear, shock and, above all, a soul deep rage passed through him. He knew he should ignore the man, to stop him from speaking, but his rage was overwhelming conscious thought. It was something he had only felt twice before when Kim, and so recently when Shay's, lives had been in danger. And now, this man was saying they were going to take Hana!

The man ignored the blue glow that suddenly flashed through Ron's eyes, and across his entire body, foolishly speaking as if his words would do anything to calm the blond who was quickly surrounded with a blue, monkey shaped aura, "Do not make us harm your parents or little sister, Stoppable!" He held up a cell phone, "I hit send, and you're at fault for whatever happe-eeaaaiiiii!"

The man's hand burst into an oddly multicolor flash as a small, tight, intense green ball of plasma struck. The color change was due to the vaporization of plastic, metal and other materials from the phone. Luckily for him, his suit was the newest design from HenchCo, incorporating a version of the material that Kim, Ron and Shay's suit had. While bulkier, it offered much of the same protections, so instead of blowing his hand off or melting it to a stub at the wrist, Shay's plasma ball merely destroyed the phone and shredded the material, leaving his right hand covered in a dozen small, but horribly painful third degree burns.

Unfortunately for the man, Shay's plasma save came too late to stop Ron. The blond was in a near berserker rage as he tore through the other men present, a blur of blue, black and blond that shoved Ken to the side, even as the ninja was cutting at any electronics he could see on the men. The Japanese man landed on his rear hard and slid several feet as Ron literally sent men flying, some with horribly broken or dislocated limbs, a few merely unconscious from what appeared to be simple touches to their heads.

Then he was upon the man whose men had harmed Shay, and who had personally threatened his parents and little sister. Ron's face was a rictus of hate as he grasped the man by the front of his uniform. "No one…" he grated, "Harms those I love, or threatens to!"

With a seemingly indifferent toss, the man went flying almost forty meters through the air and through another building's roof exit enclosure. He looked around when he heard his name screamed by a familiar voice, relaxing slightly when he saw Shay yelling at him. But he saw a transport that he knew belonged to the WWEE by its colors closing on them. He decided to take the initiative, giving into the enraged howls of the MMP demanding he rend, tear those that would harm those close to him to shreds…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay had pulled Yori's phone out to call Hirotaka when the WWEE agent threatened Ron's family. She hoped he knew something that could calm Ron down, before the blond did something he - and perhaps hundreds of innocent civilians - would regret. As soon as the Japanese man picked up, she began speaking hurriedly, "No time to talk, Pretty Boy, I need to know how to deal with a Monkey Master about to go berserk!"

"I have Kim-sama with me, Shego-san! She will be able to help more than I!" To say she was shocked to hear he had Kimmie with him was an understatement, even as she heard him speak in Japanese, before talking to Kim, "My apologies, Kim-sama, but you need to speak to Shego-san…"

"What?" Kim asked, the tension in her voice clear, "What's the sitch, Sheegs?"

"Kimmie?" Shay had a thousand questions she wanted to ask, but decided against it and just launched into asking Kim for help, "I'll ask what the hell you're doing there later, but I need your help with Ron,_ now_!"

"What's wrong?" Kim asked, her voice cold with worry.

"Ron's about to go super-ape like he did against the mean and greens!" Shay snapped, "Something about Gemini finding Monkey Fist's last notes and reading something about a weapon called 'The Han'…" She paused as she caught sight of a WWEE transport coming towards them. She glanced at it and saw it stop perhaps two hundred meters out, as if the pilot was fearful of approaching the glowing Ron Stoppable. An instant later, Ron's power flared brighter, the sounds of monkeys that Shay had only heard twice before - once that very night - back in full force and he began to float a meter and a half in mid air; the former thief knew, beyond a doubt, that he was about to go after them, somehow. "Ron, no! Stay here with us, dammit!"

"No!" Kim snapped, adding after a moment, "Keep him close, knock him out if you have to, Shay!"

"Kimmie…" Shay started, but the next sight she saw stopped her words stillborn. Ron had, somehow, caused several pieces of brick and a few loose combat knives to float up, and spun in place, kicking one of the blades on the flat side towards the WWEE transport. Shay blinked when that blade managed to not just strike the armored aerial vehicle, but stick in to the hilt. Hearing that Kim on the phone with Wade, she decided it was time for action, calling to her lover, "Fine, you're right…"

"Ken!" she yelled at the ninja as she jumped the gap between the buildings, "Watch Yori!" She gasped when she saw that Ron was about three meters in the air, several more chunks of debris flying about him, and both of the other knives already flying through the air at the now retreating transport.

"Shay," Kim called out from the Yori's phone, "tell him Wade's calling Joss and Felix to get his family!"

"Right!" Shay nodded as Ron dropped down, plainly seeking a larger piece to launch at the transport, when she landed in front of him. She slapped him hard across the face, yelling at him at the top of her voice, "Ron, listen, goddammit!"

The blond flinched, glaring at her for an instant. The look in his eyes, the rage, the uncomprehending anger, sent a shiver down her spine. She was reminded, ever so briefly, of his time as Zorpox, when he'd been the only villain to truly scare her. But, instead of the cold, calculating gaze of an evil genius, she saw the unleashed, fear driven rage of the man she'd come to, at the least, care about. The man she_ could _be falling for… The man whose fiancée loved her and she loved in return…

Taking a chance, she reached out and soothed the spot she'd slapped. He moved his hand as if to stop her, but the hand hovered halfway between his side and her wrist, as if waiting. Taking a breath, she whispered, "Please, Ronnie… Those assholes aren't worth losing it like this… Calm down, Princess said Joss and Felix are getting your family… They'll be alright, I promise…"

Something in her gaze, her words, perhaps even her voice got through to him, for he blinked. He glanced up and to the east, to see the WWEE transport far enough off as to be out of range, unless he unleashed enough of his power to actually damage a large area of the buildings around them. In that same moment, Kim's voice yelled urgently over Yori's phone.

"Ron, she's right, Wade already sent Joss 'n' Felix out!" Ron glanced at Yori's phone, uncomprehending why Kim's voice would be coming over it, but not denying his own ears, "Your 'rents are in Billings, and the WWEE doesn't know where they're at yet! They'll take them someplace safe…"

Ron took all of a second to respond, then he muttered thickly, "The ranch?"

"Yes…" Kim said softly, tears audible in her voice, "Please, Ronnie, calm down, they'll be safe…"

"Shay?" Ron glanced at Shay, his eyes still wide, the whites, tinged with his blue glowing power, clearly visible… But, deep in the eyes, Shay could see him clawing back to himself.

"I'm fine, Sport…" She smiled at him in a way that promised, despite the blood, that she was fine, "Just shook me up a bit, 'kay?"

"Ron-sama!" Ken called urgently, drawing their attention and pulling Ron further back from the brink, "Kim-sama and Hirotaka-sempai are here on the other side of the buildings!" He continued in the same urgency as Yori moaned, obviously coming around, "We must reach them before the police find us!"

"Right…" Shay nodded, glancing at Ron, who nodded as if in a daze, "C'mon, Doofus…" The blond blinked as if startled and looked back at her, "Let's get to this Hirotaka-sempai and Kimmie, 'kay?"

"Right…" Ron sighed, "Sorry…"

"No apologies now, just hurry!" Shay urged, glancing across the street to see Amsterdam's equivalent to SWAT emerging from the roof across the street. Ken tossed several small, plastic balls at their feet, causing a massive smoke cloud to envelope them. They hurriedly dropped down into the alleyway between the streets, then through a thin pedestrian access between buildings and to the road opposite of their original position.

"Get in, hurry!" Kim said from the side door of the van as Shay pushed Ron ahead of her, the red-head helping Ken and Hirotaka place Yori into the van. When she was settled, Shay jumped into the van behind Ron, who Kim had grabbed drawn into a deep hug and brief, passionate kiss. As soon as the door closed and Shay had situated herself in the now crowded rear compartment, her own shoulders were assaulted by the red-head's hugging arms, and her lips by the heroine's own. While unexpected, she honestly didn't mind, even letting out a light moan of disappointment when Kim pulled away. "You two okay?"

"Fine…" Shay murmured, "A bit roughed up, but I'm already healed."

"I'll be close to it as soon as my 'rents and Hana are safe…" Ron said darkly, "But I won't be fine 'til we get Gemini!"

"We'll get him…" Kim and Shay both said soothingly, the verdant woman continuing in a soft murmur, "I hate to ask this, but what's this 'Han' weapon Gemini's morons were ranting about?"

The entire van going silent told Shay she'd just opened a can of worms that should probably have waited until later. She glanced around and saw troubled looks on the faces of all the conscious ninja, opening her mouth to take her question back before Yori's soft voice interrupted, "As one of the women in Ron-sama's life, she must know as well…"

"Wha-…" Hirotaka started, but a stiff fingered jab to his side stopped him.

"You three are… Together, are you not?" Yori asked plainly, earning a hesitant, worried nod from Kim. Ron glanced at Shay, and she sighed, shrugging as if to say she left it up to him.

"Sorta-kinda pretty much?" Ron said in a worried tone, drawing an ire-filled moue from Yori.

The ninja sat up with a huff and favored him with a gaze that promised that while she was recovering from being unconscious, she could still give him a hurting. Shay chuckled and stepped in, saving Ron her ire by saying, "Pretty much sums it up, Yori." When Yori looked to her for an explanation, she shrugged and smiled, "I'm with Kim... And Ron... And… I think it's for the long haul." When Yori's moue deepened slightly, Shay sighed and added, "I… Hope so, anyway."

"Yeah…" Kim and Ron agreed, smiling at the pale woman, before looking back at Yori.

With a sigh, she nodded, "Very well… The Han, as Gemini learned through Monkey Fist's writings, is a weapon of great power. Fortunately for everyone involved, he does not realize that The Han is not a weapon in the traditional sense…" With an expression of heavy worry, she looked straight into Shay's eyes, almost creeping the older woman out with her intensity, "She is a weapon by birthright, the only weapon strong enough to face the demigod known as The Yono and his ilk. She is a pure conduit to the Mystical Monkey Power, imbued in it, again, by birthright, but not a true wielder of it, until the Mystical Monkey Power is passed on by the holder of the Lotus Blade. The holder of the Lotus Blade, however,_ is _the wielder of the Mystical Monkey Power… As well as her guardian and her teacher in the ways of the Mystical Monkey Power and the path of the light." Yori paused and leveled a gaze that brooked no arguments from the former thief, "For if The Han falls into the path of the shadow, the world is lost…"

"Oh, shit…" Shay murmured, making the connection based on how Ron and Kim had reacted to the news, "Ron's sis…"

"Yes." Yori nodded, "The Yono has already been, as you Americans say, taken care of… But while the Yono was known to us, there are other,_ unknown _threats that will need her power, in the future… For one such as Gemini to even know of her existence is beyond worrisome. And he wants to start a gang war in Amsterdam that, should it spread, would distract not only governments, but those government's militaries, Global Justice, and possibly the UN itself."

"Leaving Gemini free to do whatever he plans to…" She glanced at Ron, "You said the guy was wrong when he said that Th-… That Hana was what gave you the MMP, is that true?"

"Yeah, I got it from some statues Monkey Breath had…" Ron sighed, "But Yori's right, we need to stop this now, as much as I wanna be back in the US to watch the fam…"

"I'll check with Wade to see if Felix and Joss are with 'em." Kim said softly, smiling at him and patting his hand before moving to the right rear corner of the van.

"Y'gonna be okay, Sport?" Shay asked softly, placing her hand where Kim's had been.

"No…" Ron sighed heavily, "I screwed up, Shay! And I got Alfonso captured…"

"Actually, you did not, Stoppable-sama." Hirotaka said, shaking his head in disagreement, "While there may have been other courses of action that_ could _have been better, this one was successful in general." Ron screwed up his face as if to disagree, when the older man raised a finger to stop him, "Yes, they captured Alfonso-san, but he jumped out of a moving vehicle to allow his father, Toni-san and Atcherkamp-san to escape. They have already offered a 'ransom'," Ron almost laughed at the sight of Hirotaka making air-quotes, "We shall make them think that is what they are getting, and then strike when they are, as I believe Edward-san would say, 'Fat, happy and stupid'!"

"Maybe…" Ron sighed again as they pulled into the safehouse's garage. As they got out, they were greeted by the sight of several Yamanouchi ninja and a dozen each of Hendrick and Vincente's men, as well as the men themselves. "I just fee-…" He was stopped in mid word by a light slap to the back of his head.

"No more of that!" Shay said, resting her hand back on his shoulder, smiling at him, "Yeah, you listening to_ my _idea, thinking these guys were_ just _mercs, may not have been the_ best _course of action, but it worked…" She pursed her lips, eyes narrowing, "In fact… If Gemini wanted both of us like that henchman said… Keeping us all together might've been their original plan."

"The sonic blaster?" Ken asked, startling Ron, and drawing a contemplative nod from Shay.

"Exactly…" she drew out, "Ron… You and I would've been the only guaranteed survivors of a car being blasted with that thing…"

"And had Shego not blasted the vehicle with the only henchman capable of using it, they_ would_ have caught up to us, and they_ would _have ended our lives, not to mention debilitated you long enough to be captured!" Vincente's voice was firm and supportive as he leaned forward to make sure Ron was looking at him. "So while it wasn't the best course of action, Ronald, it worked, and quite well for all of us in the long run!" Seeing that Ron, hearing the words from the man most affected by the current turn of events, seemed to accept their words, he stood fully and began to stroke his moustache. "Shego and the ninja are quite right, though… That was exactly their plan!"

"Um, how d'ya know?" Ron asked, shocked that Vincente and Hendrick seemed happy to see him.

"We managed to take a few prisoners…" Masaru, the driver for Vincente and Hendrick's BMW SUV said with a certain degree of coldness that almost startled Shay.

"Are they alive?" Ron asked, swallowing against the nervousness the question brought up in his gut.

"Though they are a dishonor to the Henchman's union," Masaru all but spat, "They are still members, so yes…"

"But they were quite willing to talk when they discovered that Alfonso is my son, and that I, being a criminal, am not as bound by those rules of law…" Vincente's smile was ugly, but Shay felt she could understand why. What startled her, though, was that Ron seemed to agree with his thoughts, if the brief but dark shadow that flashed across his eyes were any indication. "Suffice it to say, we know where Alfonso is likely being held…"

Ron glanced at Hirotaka, who seemed the most up to date of the field teams, and asked, "D'you know if we've sent any scouts out?"

"We have, Stoppable-sama." Hirotaka nodded, "However, it could take the-…"

"Hey, guys?" Kim said, before anyone else could say anything, "Sorry to interrupt, but…" She turned her gaze, full of relief and no small amount of joy, on Ron, "Joss 'n' Felix got your 'rents and sis out just fine. Unfortunately, well…"

"What?" Ron asked, worry clouding his face.

"The people the WWEE sent to your house were lead by Deegan Tripe," Kim half spat, then calmed a bit, "And… They kinda tore it up when the Wadebots and the Tweebs got there…"

"Dammit, KP, don't do that!" Ron snapped, his face clouded by rapidly changing emotions. Shay chuckled softly, as did several of the others, drawing a scowl from Ron and a titter from Kim. The red-head put her arms around Ron's chest and hugged him, drawing a sigh from him as he kissed her forehead, "Sorry… Thanks for letting me know, KP…"

"No big." she answered, before glancing around, "So… What's the sitch?"

"We're getting my son back," Vincente growled lowly, his tone cold and uglier than his earlier smile.

"And as soon as Yamanouchi's scouts get back," Hendrick added, "we shall teach Gemini that it is not wise to screw with people such as myself and Vincente!"

"Just let us know the plan," Kim murmured, holding up the wrist with her Kimmunicator, "And I'll see if I can't stir up some more assistance!"

"Ooo, good call, Kimmie!" Shay said in a sing-song voice, "Nerdlinger should be able to help narrow the search area for the scouts, and you have some friends here in Europe!" At several raised eyebrows, she waved in Ron and Kim's general direction, "With Kimmie's cyber master on the job and scaring up some help, our side just got a huge boost!"

"Any help will be good." Yori murmured as they were led into the safehouse proper, "And Wade-san is very,_ very _good." Kim nodded as she walked over to Yori when the ninja sat down heavily on a couch in the main room, where the TV was playing a live broadcast, with video of the prior hour and a half's events. For some reason, that seemed to strike something in Kim, and she pulled out her older Kimmunicator and brought up the medical scanner before running it over the Japanese teen's body, "What is that for, Kim-sama?"

"Medical scan," Kim said with a smile, Rufus clambering up to look over the readings with her. He smiled and gave Yori a thumbs up, to which Kim nodded in agreement, "Looks like other than some light bruising to your upper arm and a few places on your torso, you're good."

"Thank God…" Ron murmured, sitting down in the love seat next to the couch, "I was worried about you…" He glanced up at Shay as she stepped next to the couch he sat on, "And especially you, Shay… You took the_ brunt_of that sonic blaster thingy!"

"Like I said, Sport," Shay smiled as she sat down next to him, forcing herself to ignore the snotty sounding mimicking of her words by the voice that was not quite her own, "I was healed up by the time you and Ken were about to jump into that crossfire in the making on the other roo-…" Shay frowned at Kim as the red-head, with an irritated, worried look on her face, began to scan her, "Dammit, Possible, I said I was recovered!"

"And you had a WWEE modified Sonic Destructulator used on you!" Kim snapped back, frowning slightly. Rufus squeaked an agreement in a similarly annoyed tone, before blowing the older woman a raspberry. "You've still got some bruising in your left lung and kidney, and you'll_ need _to eat before we head out again, but everything else looks fine." Kim raised an eyebrow as Shay huffed, almost turning away from Kim's serious, but worried gaze. "Sorry, Love… We just don't want you to get hurt like last time…"

_Awww, look! _the familiar voice griped, finally finding another target other than Ron to rant about,_ She's_ worried _about Go City's Superwhore! _There was a sharp bark of laughter from the voice, before it dropped into a plaintive, child-like tone,_ Jus' wike Wonnie an' widdwe Wufus! _Another, calmer but darker chuckle followed, the voice changing back to what Shay was used to,_ I suppose since you've finally accepted that these idiots love you that you're going to let them get hurt the next time you go out, right? I mean, since your luck seems to be what got them_ both _into this, it's what's expected, eh? _Shay let out a sigh, deciding to just let the voice flow through and over her like water over a rock,_ I mean, hell, you don't even_ know _that ninja bitch, and you almost got her_ killed_!_

"No…" Shay whispered, in answer to both the voice and the silent question she read in Kim's eyes._ My actions saved her life, damn you! And you know it as well as_ I_ do, you… Whatever the hell you are! _The voice stayed silent except for a bit of grumbling, and Shay saw that Kim had was awaiting an explanation for her single word denial. Shay shook her head briefly, drawing a shuddery breath, "Don't be sorry for being worried, Princess; I'm fine, or will be by the time the action starts up again, but you're right to check…" She reached out and pulled Kim close, holding her tightly and all but dragging her onto the couch. The red-head squeaked in surprise, Rufus jumping from her shoulder to the couch's arm with a protest of his own, before settling herself into her lover's lap, "I'm sorry you got dragged into this, Kimmie, but I'm glad you're here…" She glanced at Rufus, who still wore a scolding expression on his face, "At least Bud here kept you mostly out of trouble!"

"Yeah…" Kim finally relaxed into Shay's warm hug, almost jumping as Ron settled his arms around both her shoulders and Shay's. She was happy that the older woman didn't jump or tense up as normal, but seemed to accept the gesture. The red-head almost purred as Ron placed a gentle kiss under her ear, an action mirrored by Shay at almost the same time on the opposite side of her neck. "Glad I can help…" She made a happy sound as her lovers made sounds of agreement, then turned to look back into Shay's eyes, "Y'know, Lover, you're awfully tense…"

Shay chuckled, looking back into the expressive eyes of her lover with a quirk to her lips, "Maybe your Doofus could give me one of those back rubs of his?"

"Hey!" Ron objected teasingly as he sat down to Kim and Shego's left, "Right here, y'know…"

"Well," Kim said as if not hearing Ron, but giving him a wink, "I think_ our _Doofus would love to give you one, Sheegs…"

"_Our _Doofus, Princess?" Shay asked, earning a happy nod from Kim. The pale woman reached up, as if without thinking, to ruffle Ron's hair, her eyes sparkling as she continued to stare at Kim, "Y'know, I… I kinda like the sounds of that."

_Oh, the whore's making a choice to condemn the woman she loves and the_ boy _she wants to screw, is she? _the voice snipped,_ I wonder how badly they're going to suffer for you, Shego, hmmm?_

She ignored the voice, because Kim's statement was true… Whether the voice liked it or not, after seeing Ron's reaction to her being hurt… She knew, at the deepest levels, that Ron was hers, just as surely as he was Kim's…

And that he would always be hers, even if she was never his…

**Author's Notes**

Wow, unexpected realization on Shego's part there at the end… Or, at least, unexpected for her, considering how she's been feeling up to this point… Then again, there was a_ lot _going on in this chapter, and our heroes went through a_ lot _of stress, so is that kind of realization all that surprising?

Then we have Shego learning things about Ron and his sister she'd never suspected, Ron nearly going berserk over Shego getting hurt and the WWEE muscling in on organized crime?

And then Tripe's escape - so easily done, with inside help - interrupting a sweet-turned-nearly-sexy scene with poor Joss and Felix. Will those two ever catch a break to really explore what they want with each other? Only time will tell…

Uh, oh, Gemini, Betty and Agent Alpha reveal part of their plan, and it involves… Warmonga? Oh, no…

And all of it starting off with the revelation that Kim has_ knowingly _dipped her toe into the grey area of being a hero… Even if she never really admitted it before that point, even, if her words are any indication, to herself, let alone anyone else!

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work, this fic'd suck a_ lot_ more without her! ^_^' And remember: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Foreword**

And here's Chapter 8! Got it posted a bit later in the day than I'd intended, but at least it's up, non? ^_^ And here's the review replies!

studyofchaos: thanks for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed the action and pacing, I tried not to get too bogged down with things. There's a bit more drama this chapter than last, but, as always, it's important.

Jimmy1201: thanks again for the review. I kinda thought that the 'Guest' last chapter was you, but you know what they say about assuming. Yes, Joss 'n' Felix got hit with that lesson pretty hard, but I'm sure that Kim got a few small paybacks like that, considering how much her dad likes barbecuing… At least in fanon! As to Warmonga… She's worth a bit more than six million! 'Specially with the tech that went into fixing her (which will be detailed in a later chapter.). You're quite correct, Gemini's a bit… Underinformed. Good catch with Kim's views on the relationship and as to Shego's voice… Time, as always, will tell.

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Alright, Thetas," Deegan Tripe, also known as WWEE Agent Delta, snapped, "I have to know, who in the_ hell _hired most of your former compatriots on as members of the WWEE?"

"Agent Theta…" Theta Fifteen answered nervously, disliking the pure ire in Agent Delta's voice.

"Figures…" the now brunette woman muttered. She grasped at the throat length hair hanging in front of her face and tugged in a show of frustration. She'd taken some high quality dye that matched her natural hair color to the recently shorn mop, and was happy that it had worked for her eyebrows and eyelashes, as well. Sighing, she turned to look at the ten remaining members of the thirty member squad she still had with her. The others had been captured by two robots and two_ kids _running some kind of… Of drones helping the two robots with Team Possible logos on their computer screen faces, leaving her with people that, at least so far, seemed to have both a clue and the instinct to do what she'd needed them to do. "Any idea what the hell hit us at the Stoppable home?"

"Wadebots and some kind of high end drone." Delta Two, the only member of WWEE's Delta Team that had gotten away from GJ… All thanks to the irony of being incredibly sick on the day Tripe had planned to reveal Kim Possible's dirty secret. She was still pale and suffered a case of the sniffles, but had assured Tripe that she was past the communicable stage of whatever ailed her. "And I'm certain the twins were the other two Possible kids…"

"Then we're lucky we got out alive!" Theta Twenty Two moaned, "I was stationed to watch Possible and Stoppable down in California when that rich nancy-boy threw a party for the Middleton High senior class!"

"What's your point?" Tripe sighed, rolling her hand in a 'come on' fashion.

"They made a goddamn plasma launcher that looked like something that traitor to evil, Shego, uses!" Theta Twenty Two snapped, "They blew up a SUV like it was child's play!"

"Theta Twenty Two." Tripe said calmly, pulling a 'joy buzzer', one of WWEE's near lethal - if used 'properly' - stun gun gloves from her uniform's pocket, "Be very, very glad that Lord Gemini no longer wishes capital punishment for attitudes such as yours."

"Sorry, ma'am!" Theta Twenty Two gulped loudly, "It's just…"

"I understand…" She sighed and placed the glove back in her pocket, continuing in a calmer tone, "Which is a good thing! Because despite your dramatics, you provided us with valuable information! And, I do mean that, ladies and gentlemen: I understand!" Tripe said with a somewhat conciliatory tone, "You're scared. You've gone from being of occasional worth as more than paper pushers to being thrust into a dangerous op. But!" She held up a finger, her tone optimistic, "Since that dizzy blonde egg donor for Stoppable left that dinner invitation letter out in the open, we were at least able to find out where they're going."

She glanced around the WWEE secret hangar in Lowerton, smirking at the sleek, dangerous shape of a GJ stealth transport. With a wicked smirk, she continued, "And since Global Justice saw fit to…_ Gift _us this transport, I see no reason for us to miss our opportunity to get Lord Gemini what he so desperately needs." She turned back to the remaining Thetas, men and women normally reserved for inconspicuous spy missions and administrative work. Those that remained had shown true sparks of capability, managing to destroy not only one of the Wadebots, as Delta Two had called them, but one of the twins' aerial terror devices.

The woman smirked, knowing that, even with Theta Twenty Two's theatrical panic, she had a solid core to build from with these ten. A group which, with the exception of the always excellent Delta Two, was better than her core group in Delta Team when she'd initially signed on to the WWEE roster! She could work with what she had and if she could get Theta Twenty Two to calm down - he was a good follower of the WWEE line, after all - they'd be even better than the old Delta Team, the WWEE's premier infiltration force!

"All of you have great potential, today proved that!" she murmured, "So, as of now, all of you are the new, if provisional, Team Delta. I will assign numbers as I see fit, but first, we have to track down the Stoppables. We will find them, or if they're already in hiding, which is likely, their general whereabouts. On the way to Billings, I shall contact Lord Gemini to ask his orders, especially if they are_ not _at this dinner."

"Um," Delta Two cleared her throat, "Ma'am, I have already informed Lord Gemini as you asked. He said he will relay orders when we are airborne, but told us_ not _to go to Billings, at least, not right away…"

"Our orders might be changing, I take it?" Tripe asked, earning a slight smirk from Delta Two.

"Based on his wording and attitude, I'd say that's a good possibility." Delta Two's smirk widened slightly, "No pun intended…" The comment earned some laughter from the team, which had been Delta Two's intention.

"I'm sure." Tripe deadpanned, but smirked slightly as she glanced around at the new Team Delta. She pointed at Delta Two, making sure to make eye contact with everyone else on the team. "And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what I like to see!" Tripe sniggered, "Initiative, an ability to stay cool under pressure and the ability to think on your feet." There were a few nods, but a few scrunched brows, and she added, "Not only did D-Two use initiative to check in with Lord Gemini, she saw that all of you needed to calm down after what we went through. Her little joke did just that." There were a few surprised blinks, none more surprised than the former Theta Twenty Two, but all of them nodded. With a nod of her own, Tripe continued, "Very well, ladies and gentlemen, you heard Delta Two! Mount up and get your minds wrapped around the idea to be ready for_ anything_!"

"I got a bad feelin' about this…" the former Theta Twenty Two muttered, but did as he was told. After all, none of them wanted to be on the short list if Gemini reinstated capital punishment for failures!

Unseen by everyone else, Delta Two tapped the side of her WWEE tablet computer in a very specific fashion. To anyone else, it would have looked like a nervous habit, but to the inner workings of the tablet, it was a specific code. Using the quantum entanglement communication array hidden within the device, it sent out a heavily encrypted recording of the previous twenty minutes. That recording, upon full reception at its destination, sent a message to a terminal, which informed the terminal's user to send it to a smartphone. This smartphone was apparently a GJ issue smartphone… With the addition of similar, equally secret circuitry, which was airborne somewhere over Europe.

The owner of that very smartphone, an attractive half-Filipino, half-Chinese man, felt his phone vibrate and frowned as he pulled it out. His frown turned into a hopeful half-smirk as he read the message that went with the attached video; after all, this video might just provide some much needed information to the meeting he was going to be participating in that very Sunday. A meeting of some import, at that…

Had anyone looked inside either device, and found the quantum entanglement array, and had they put a specific part of that array under a powerful scanning electron microscope, they'd have been shocked. For, etched onto that one part at a few atoms deep, and several tall and wide, were the words, 'Porter, Lipsky and Load L.L.C. QECA'…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"What the hell?" Edward 'Motor Ed' Lipsky muttered darkly, staring at the ciphered text he'd received from his woman.

"What is up?" the Swiss man he had been in a business meeting with for the last four and a half hours asked, drawing Ed's attention to him. Ed shrugged sheepishly, not having realized he'd spoken aloud. "I hope that is the right phrasing?"

"Yeah, that's seriously close enough, Mr. Markus." Ed said, barely able to repress his near instinctual need to call the man 'Mr. Conveyor Belt Dude'. "Just… Totally got an important message from my wo-… Er, girlfriend." Seeing the concerned raised eyebrow from Mr. Markus, the metalhead engineer shrugged, "She does some stuff with majorly awesome dudes like Team Possible from time to time, and she's apparently having some trouble; she wanted me to know she'd seriously be home late."

"My word?" the man said, his questioning tone seeming to be a part of how he spoke English, as if he had long ago grown used to asking if he were using the correct phrase despite his relatively clean accent.

"Is it something to be concerning about, Edward?" the other primary of the meeting, Ed's partner in business, Hanz DeMenz, the former Professor Dementor, asked as he walked up to them, glancing around the small, surprisingly lavish convention room of the hotel. The Hausmann Suites of Munich was almost too much for the two engineering minded men, and DeMenz had helped use Lorwardian technology to build it!

But that was easily shuffled aside at Ed's comment. Ed glanced over at him, seeing understanding in the older man's eyes. Ed figured it had something to do with being a supervillain for years… Perhaps even being the uncle of the late hero,_ Der Uhrwerk Ritter_. Obviously he knew that for Ed to have received such a message was trouble. After all, he'd been present when Ed had asked Yori to avoid texting him unless the event was over or she had trouble!

Shaking himself from the brief reverie, Ed re-read the ciphered sections of the text and grimaced, "Prolly, Hanz-man…" Ed said with a slightly worried expression, "She's apparently doin' somethin' serious with Blondie from Team Possible, an' it's apparently dragged Shego an' Red into it…"

"So all of Team Possible is being on another mission with Shego and Ms. Yori?" Hanz asked with worry in his face.

"So is it something that will be requiring your presence?" Mr. Markus asked, concern overriding in his tone and on his face, "We Swiss have understanding of being part of such things."

"Yes, you Swiss helped out Germany much during the Invasion Event and after." DeMenz nodded, "He has a good question, Edward, will your presence be required?"

"Maybe…" Ed hedged slightly, knowing Yori wanted him to avoid breaking the pardon he had, similar to the one Drakken and Shego had been offered, "But they're totally over in Amsterdam…"

"It would be my pleasure to fly you?" Mr. Markus said in his seemingly normal, questioning tone. Ed raised an eyebrow, smiling slightly. When the older man continued, his tone was oddly cadenced, sounding, instead of like a tone of assurance, more conciliatory, as if he were uncertain and sorry to admit it. However, Ed had come to understand that it was due to how he'd learned English, and the look on Mr. Markus' face was that of a man sure of what he was saying, "I have a jet that will get you there in four hours. It will be a pleasure and an honor to assist you!"

"Well, that being solved," DeMenz said, "I am still close to my nephew's widow and she shall be more than happy to assist you! She knows, and could be convincing, I'm sure,_ Diebfluch und Der Uhrwerk Ritter _to assist you as well!"

Ed couldn't help it as the two other men made their offers; he struck up an air guitar solo in the conference room. DeMenz chuckled ruefully and shook his head, obviously thankful that Ed had reduced his normal volume of the action. "This is seriously _awesome_! Thank you_ so _much, dudes!"

"It is no problem at all…" Mr. Markus assured him, his indulgent smile that of a man who liked helping, despite running a multi billion dollar multinational company.

"It is the least I can be doing." DeMenz agreed easily, smiling like a man who had finally found himself in life…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay awoke with a start from a four hour long nap. She sat up and glanced around, her hands lighting up reflexively as she glanced around the small, dimly lit bedroom in one of Yamanouchi's other Amsterdam safehouses. They had decided to set up an alternate 'headquarters' for the backup near the original safehouse, for security's sake if nothing else. She had eaten on the move, then received her massage less than ten minutes after suggesting it, falling into a surprisingly comfortable sleep. Now, however, she'd been woken up by the sound of frustrated growling coming from Kim combined with the annoyed yet conciliatory tones of Ron as they argued about something.

"What the hell?" Shay asked in the tone of someone used to waking up with their faculties mostly intact. It was one of the things she both loved and hated from her years as a criminal, despite how it had annoyed a few of her sexual partners over the years.

"Oh, um…" Kim grumbled as she glanced at Shay, her face colored with an odd mixture of angry and embarrassed which matched her angry yet chagrined expression. With a groan, she glanced at Ron, who had closed his eyes in the age old expression of someone trying hard not to make a comment that would further escalate the argument. "Sorry we woke you…"

"Probably for the best…" Shay yawned, glancing at the clock next to the bed, "About an hour before we start rolling on the mission?"

"Yeah," Ron said, grimacing as Kim huffed slightly, "And with the connection to the WWEE, Wade and Hendrick asked if Vincente wanted backup, so he called in the group covering for us in Europe…"

"Okay, so?" Shay asked as, yet again, Kim huffed, this time with a slight growl at the beginning, "What the hell, Kimmie? Don't tell me you're jealous of another crew helping out?"

"No!" Kim half groaned, half yelled. She glanced at Shay as the older woman raised an eyebrow at the red-head's tone and huffed again, "Sorry, Shay, but…"

"She was actually all for someone stepping up to help out," Ron explained, "but she didn't know who, exactly it was…"

"I can't_ believe _her!" Kim started, but a finger on her lips silenced her more effectively than a gag would have. Kim flinched back and opened her mouth to continue, but the older woman smirked and grabbed her, spinning her in place and allowing herself to fall back to a sitting position on the bed. She dragged Kim down with her, who swanked in surprise, wrapping her arms around Kim's and holding a hand over the red-head's mouth.

"Who?" Shay asked, smirking at Ron, who was trying very, very hard not to smile as Kim made sounds of protest, trying to dislodge the older woman to no avail.

"The Upperclassmen." Ron half chuckled, shaking his head at Kim's muffled attempt to add her own slant on things.

"I've heard of them," Shay admitted easily, "Saw a couple news reports and heard some good things through the grapevine thanks to work…"

Kim felt Shay relax slightly as she spoke, finally managing to slip her fingers around Shay's wrist. She twisted slightly to gain leverage and pulled the hand down to her chest, finally grating out, "They might be good, but that's only because Triple-S can bankroll them to be!"

"Woah…" Both of Shay's eyebrows raised at this bit of information, "Wait a minute… The old man, the kid and the kid's wife're heroes now?"

"Yes!" Kim snapped, "And here I thought she'd actually turned over a new leaf, but she's just trying to show the world she can be a better hero than_ I _ca-…"

"Dammit, Kim!" Ron snapped, finally having had enough of her ranting, "You know as well as I do that's bullshit! Bonnie's grown up, so quit acting like she's still got some high school vendetta against you!"

When Ron had first snapped at her, Kim had tensed in Shay's arms, inclining the woman to be ready to wrap her up more thoroughly; however, the still rare curse her fiancé had used stopped her. She stared at him with her mouth working as she stared at Ron, allowing Shay to understand what, exactly, was happening. She began to chuckle, falling back on the bed and pulling Kim close to her, despite the red-head's sudden, if quiet, protests, "That's right, Junior married that snooty bitch that was on the cheer squad with you…"

"It's not funny, Shay!" Kim protested, her face flushing in anger once again as she struggled to get free of Shay's grasp.

"Oh, I disagree!" Shay chuckled louder as if unconsciously making her point, then leaned in to whisper in Kim's ear, "Why don't you tell us why you're so pissed about Triple-S going good instead of continuing in evil, huh?"

"That's not what I'm pissed about!" Kim finally stopped struggling, her face drawing into a pout, "I'm jus-…"

"Just jealous that she got a better start at hero work than you 'cause of Triple-S' money?" Shay interrupted, "Or that you're not the only one from your high school that's a hero?"

Kim's pout froze, then became an angry glare as she first looked over her shoulder at the smug grin on Shay's face, then managed to twist in Shay's now lax grasp, leveling her glare at the older woman. "That's_ not _funny, Shay!" she hissed, "I put up with her competing with me in_ everything _for_ years_! Since everyone started caring about social standing in junior friggin' high!" Shay winced slightly at the almost curse from Kim, not having realized just how worked up Kim had become, "So forgive me if I thought she was just pulling another one of her stupid, 'I'm better than Kim Possible!' games!" Shay's face fell slightly at the almost accusatory tone in Kim's voice, which made Kim's face slide from anger and back into her pout of a moment before, but this one hurt and a bit lost.

"Calm down, Princess…" Shay cooed when Kim fell silent, turning her immobilizing grasp into a nearly full body hug, "Okay, when you put it that way, it makes sense, but, well…"

Shay felt the regular size bed move as Ron slipped in and put his arms around Kim as well, "Okay, maybe it wasn't a good idea to let you know that right after you found out Shay got hurt by that stolen sonic blaster thingy…" Ron admitted, sighing slightly, "But Shay's right, you did sounds kinda…"

"Kinda like I was being a spoiled little jerk?" Kim supplied in a self directed, snarky tone. Ron opened his mouth to say something, but Shay spoke first, her tone decidedly dry.

"Maybe a little bit…" Shay leaned forward to plant a light kiss on Kim's nose to lessen the impact of the comment, "But at least you had a halfway decent reason…"

Kim sighed, nuzzling into the crook of Shay's neck and pulling Ron's arms tighter around her, "Sorry…"

"No problemo, KP!" Ron quipped from behind her, leaning up to give her a kiss just below her ear, "At least you got it out before they called in to say they were here and ready to be on call."

"And they were_ just _going to be backup?" Shay prodded, earning an annoyed, embarrassed groan from Kim and a light chuckle from Ron, "Calm down, Princess… We're going to need you ready to go in about thirty minutes…"

"I know…" Kim sighed, "Can we… Just stay like this for a few minutes?"

"How 'bout we get up now," Shay countered, making sure Ron was looking straight in her face, "and continue this tonight after we're done?" Ron raised an eyebrow, wondering what she was getting at, drawing a soft smile from the former thief, "I'm really comfy like this, but I think I'd be more so back at the house…"

She paused to allow that to sink in, and was just about to speak when the voice murmured softly to her._ Don't say it, Little Shay… Don't risk one of them getting hurt… _The voice dropped to a barely audible whisper in her mind,_ You_ know _it'll happen if you do!_

Kim looked up, her eyes matching Ron's mild confusion, especially after the pause. Now that they were looking at her, she gave them a soft smile, as if she'd only been waiting for their attention. "Y'know, on… On_ our _bed?" Her voice was soft and a bit tense, but sure and confident at once despite the slight hesitation. She drew in a breath and let it out slowly, closing her eyes as she realized she felt… Different, in that moment. Not life shatteringly so, but… Still different, more like herself than she had in years. She felt a feather light touch just above her cheekbone, calloused fingers leading an equally calloused palm as it carefully caressed her cheek. She opened her eyes to see Ron's hand there, a concerned smile on his face.

"You sure, Shay?" he asked, and she nodded, her eyes slightly distant as she spoke.

"Yes." Shay bit her lip for a brief moment, before reaching up to clasp Ron's hand with her own, "I realize that we're not a… A_ complete _trio, like we're going to imply during the interview, but… But, I'm ready to… I_ want _to consider us… Together, I guess… So…" She took a deep breath, "Our bed. Our home in Amsterdam…"

"Shay-Shay…" Kim whispered in an almost sing-song voice, drawing the older woman's gaze to her, "I'm not complaining, but why the change?"

"Tonight…" Shay said, glancing away and nodding at Ron, "He showed me that…" She paused, looking away from them to stare up at the ceiling, "I… I_ know _what Ron says, about his feelings for you, Kimmie… How his feelings are the same for me… I was never really able to… To_ completely _believe it, 'til… 'Til tonight." She took a couple of breaths before looking back at them, Ron's eyes understanding and Kim's rapt with attention. Her lips and eyes twitched, but she fought off the urge for her face to crumple, pushing on without further hesitation, "Tonight, he showed me that he really does love me… Like he says, as much as he loves you, Kimmie."

Ron nodded bemusedly, as if she'd said the most obvious thing in the world, but Shay stifled him with a pleading gaze, "This… Isn't easy for me, but… This… This crazy ass train ride from Hell we've been on since the opening day at Oktoberfest… It has me more mentally twisted around and confused than I've been since high school!" She let herself laugh softly, blinking her eyes to clear them, "I… I don't know where it'll lead but, after tonight?" She glanced down at Kim, her eyes shimmering faintly with repressed emotions, but her voice and expression steady, "Kimmie… I might… I_ am_… Honestly falling for this goofy sidekick you call a fiancé…"

She turned her gaze to Ron, almost flinching as she admitted her emotions to them, "And as much as it scares me… To be honest,_ terrifies _me… And as much as I'm not ready for… For_ some _things with you…" A soft chuckle emanated from the two teens, and Shay managed a slight smile. Then she took another breath, her face sobering into the most serious expression either teen had seen from her before, "No matter what, I want to stay on this crazy train… To see just how far it goes."

Ron, despite his assurance a moment earlier, was struck speechless as he finally understood. Nonetheless, his his closed mouth and blinking stare gave indication that he obviously hadn't expected what she was saying. Especially since his worst mistakes during the day's events had such a profound - not to mention positive - effect on the older woman. Kim's expression was completely different; It was loving, accepting and while surprised, was pleasantly so and sincerely happy.

Kim let out breath she'd held for several seconds, then craned her neck slightly to plant a soft but meaningful kiss on Shay's lips, before turning her head to give Ron the same kind of kiss. The tender kiss brought the blond back from the depths of whatever shock he'd been feeling, drawing a brief, startled shake from him. After a moment of staring at her fiancée, the red-head turned back to Shay with delight dancing in her eyes. The older woman, while hoping otherwise, was expecting Kim to go into some flowery, happily romantic rant, or an introspective speech about how everything would work out in the end. Instead, she used some of Shay's own words to express her feelings on the subject, words that Shay felt were beyond perfect.

"Welcome aboard, Love…"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"What is wrong, my Bonnie?" Junior asked as they went through the process of donning their armor, his wife, as always, a step ahead of him as she sealed her padded underarmor, "You seem quite worried."

"I am, Baby…" Bonnie sighed, leaning against his massive chest and giving him a hug, incidentally stopping his progress in donning his padded underarmor, "I'm worried that K might, I don't know, freak about me becoming a hero like she is…"

"Because of your past with her?" Junior asked, raising a concerned eyebrow and leaning down to kiss the top of her head.

"Um, partly?" Bonnie hedged, then sighed in defeat as Junior began to hum and graze his fingers along the smooth musculature of her lower back. She twisted her lips in a wry smile before looking up at the man she'd fallen head over heals in love with at first sight, leaning up to kiss him, "Okay, okay…" She disengaged somewhat from him, letting her hands trail down his well muscled arms to grasp his, "I'm… I'm just worried… I used to try and compete with Kim in… Well, nearly everything." She looked down at her feet, guilt writ plainly on her face, "I'm worried she might… Misunderstand that my wanting to do this wasn't to compete with her…"

"I know you were saying once that it was to help keep father and I out of crime?" Bonnie nodded, but didn't continue, so he reached down to raise her chin, staring into her eyes, "But that is not all, yes?"

"No, it's not…" Bonnie turned, grabbing her suit from its rack and sliding the seal fully open before turning back to him, "It's… Okay, it's like this… I always… Envied her?" Junior nodded in at least partial understanding, "I… I always wanted to be people's heroes… But you've met my family, and_ heroes_, real, honest to God heroes like K? Altruism is considered the next best thing to slitting your own throat in that household!" She growled low in her throat, shaking her head clear of thoughts of her erstwhile family. "Now, though, with you and Daddy, and Daddy so willing to indulge me… And with you wanting to be a hero after seeing your old teacher doing the hero thing during the invasion… I can do_ good_, like Kim does… Not just for me, but, honestly?" She tried to laugh, but it came out as a fragile, uncertain sound, "Honestly, Junior… For the world, you know what I'm saying?"

"I understand, my Bonnie…" Junior replied, "But if you are sincere, why are you worried?" His prodding tone was gentle but insistent as he finished donning his underarmor and sealed it, reaching for his own suit himself, his gaze and voice confused, "Kim Possible is a hero, I am sure she will not dislike you being one as well?"

"Like I said, you goof!" Bonnie snipped, her face screwing up with worry, "I'm worried she might think I'm tryin' to compete with her again." She gave him an apologetic look for being snippy, then shrugged. When he smiled in understanding, she relaxed, returning his smile with a wistful expression as she slid one of her legs into her suit. "I threw so much of my life away with that kinda stuff, Junior… And I… I'm just worried that, when I want to do something for the world, for complete_ strangers _for once… That I might throw away what I gained with Kim and Ron because she gets pissed…"

"But what if the vacation has helped her come back to herself?" Junior's question was barely that, as if he were sure of his conclusion, but wanted her to ask the same question herself, "She may not be so stressed as even I could see when she and Ronald visited…"

"I hope you're right, Baby…" she sighed as they came in on their final approach, the stealth systems on full. She glanced back to see Junior just finishing sealing his helmet, before tapping the wall and calling out, "Daddy, we're dressed and ready for the stealth drop."

"Very well, then, Mechanic." 'X' answered as he stepped out of his own dressing area, "Let us meet up with our former foes, now our, hopefully, earnest allies."

Bonnie sighed and nodded, "Got it, X." she said, before leading her husband and father-in-law into the three quick drop hatches. They laid down on the rear, downward angled hatch accessways, locked themselves into the launch hooks and set their bodies in launch position, which hooked into the armor of their chest and shoulders. The covers slid around them, then the sound of a quick cycling vacuum pump echoed through the chamber until the interior pressure matched the outside pressure at twenty two thousand feet.

As soon as it was done, Bonnie intoned, "Launching in five…" After speaking, she tongued the launch sequence button inside her helmet, and a countdown sprang up on their helmets' faceplate. At '1', they each felt the mule kick of three ultra fast hydraulic cylinders shoving them out into the air. "God I love this!" the teal eyed beauty crowed as they slammed out into the open air, the wings of their suits deploying and the engines firing to keep them aloft.

"I have their location," Junior announced, moving up to take the lead. The three of them had found, thanks to Shego's training a few years earlier, he was actually an incredibly competent navigator. That had been one of the reasons his request to keep flight and practice hours had been so easily accepted by France and Spain, and thus, the European Union's various licensing agencies. "Mr. Wade said that the new stealth function will help, but we can still be visible under the correct circumstances."

"Let's hope it works as well as he and that blue guy said they would!" Bonnie grumbled, mildly annoyed that they were testing what amounted to a prototype system, "And if it does, K'd better be happy we tested it!"

"I am sure she will be, Mechanic." The smile on Triple-S's face was clearly audible over the comm. link, drawing a slightly chagrined sigh from Bonnie.

"I am sure it will all work for the better, Mechanic!" Junior laughed, angling downwards and to the right a bit, "It would be best to come down in the back yard, away from the lights, yes?"

"Good call, Pipes." Triple-S agreed as he and Bonnie followed suit.

Bonnie saw someone in the backyard of the house and activated her suit's external camera, putting it in telephoto mode. A small window opened up on the inside of her mask, drawing a sardonic chuckle from her, "Looks like Ron and Rufus are waiting for us already."

"How can you tell?" Junior asked in one of his occasional, but still annoying moments of vacuous inattention.

"He's talking to Rufus and pointing at us, Pipes." Triple-S said patiently, chuckling at the annoyed grunt of agreement from Bonnie, before adding, "It is always a good idea to be in full, as Miss Possible would say, 'Mission Mode'. We merely engaged the telephoto function of our suit's external cameras…"

"And turned on the low-light function." Pipes sighed in self-directed annoyance.

Bonnie could see him shake his head in the same manner of his voice, saying softly, "You're still getting used to being a hero, Pipes… It's understandable that you go space case sometimes."

"Yes, but Miss Shego taught me better than that." Junior sighed in counter to Bonnie's comment, "I should not be so, as you call it, 'space case', when we are on missions."

"Well, I guess." Bonnie agreed, pleased with herself that she was able to hide her jealousy when Junior mentioned the woman that had been his teacher in villainy… And, however brief a relationship it was, they had been, as Junior had called it, '…merely friendly with the benefits!' It was still… Worrying, to say the least!

She just hoped that the woman wasn't still interested in her husband that way, and not because he was still powerfully attracted to the beautiful former thief… But because there was no way she'd share Junior with another woman, especially a woman that Bonnie's self-image screamed was far more attractive… Attractive enough to make Bonnie's exceedingly small list of women she found attractive in 'that way'. Granted, Junior hadn't said anything about wanting to restart his old relationship with the older woman, but the way he_ talked _about her bordered on something between talking about a favorite aunt and a woman he was still very,_ very _attracted to!

Bonnie bit her lip as she thought of that. Something she hadn't told Kim almost two months earlier was that she and Junior shared everything about each other… Past dalliances with significant others, alcohol, drugs - though Bonnie's fairly recent admission of her first experience with drugs and her first lover had taken the longest between the two to share - and even silly things like changes in food and musical tastes… Everything!

She'd even admitted to Junior - but not to Kim - that she'd experimented with Alex Eressos while the girl had been her English tutor. It wasn't that she felt a lack of trust for the world saving heroine; quite the opposite in fact! While she'd have ripped into someone for suggesting it even three months ago, she felt as close to Kim as to Tara, another person she'd shared everything about her life with… But she'd held off, not wanting to give the obviously stressed red-head more stress.

Now she was worried that, with that one experimentation, Junior might want more than just friendship with the former thief. Yes, she'd experimented with a girl, once… And yes, she'd enjoyed it for what it was, but she was, to the core, a monogamous woman at heart, with at least a ninety five percent of her sexual attraction leaning towards men. Probably more…

And she'd never told Kim any of this. Now, though… She wished she had, 'cause she was quite certain she'd need a woman to have some quality 'girl time' with. Especially if Junior treated Shego as more than a friend and former teacher… Glancing out, she was broken from her reverie when she saw how close they were to landing. The three of them came in for a landing with precision that drew a happy smile from her face despite her fears, especially when she saw the impressed look on Ron's face. "Hey there, Doofus," she called out softly, "Are we doing planning first, or do we have a few to catch up?"

"Eh, planning's waiting for about fifteen minutes," Ron muttered with a chuckle, "Wade's got some information that he has to go through that will probably help us out…"

"Okay, cool." Bonnie said as Ron led the three heroes into the house. After they were inside, they removed their helmets, letting them hang from the back of their suits, "So, um…"

"Um?" Ron asked when Bonnie paused, then blushed as Junior chuckled. That chuckle stopped when Bonnie leveled a dangerous glare at him, making Ron glance at Triple-S.

"She is worried that Kimberly is taking her becoming a heroine to help out the wrong way." the elder Senior supplied with a chuckle of his own.

"Daddy…" Bonnie said in a drawn out sigh.

"No big!" Ron said with a chuckle, "She got a little steamed, but Sha-ego and I kinda calmed her down."

"Good…" Bonnie said, raising an eyebrow at how Ron had changed the name he was using halfway through.

"How is Shego, Ronald?" Triple-S asked, concern evident in his voice, "I saw news reports about Germany at home - as well as that horrid television show about heroes - that she was injured?"

"Yeah, but she's fine now." Ron said, drawing Bonnie's other eyebrow up at the… Oddly protective note in Ron's voice.

"Y'could've asked me, Triple-S!" Shego griped teasingly, interrupting Bonnie as she was opening her mouth to speak. She glanced over to see Shego leaning against the doorjamb between the kitchen door opposite the one which they'd entered the house with. "Hey, Pops, Junior." She swept her eyes up and down each of them, her eyes, to Bonnie's surprise, lingering on Bonnie the longest, "And Bonnie… Glad to hear you've cut back on the bitchitude, I'd have to kick your ass if you gave Junior too much trouble."

"Really." Bonnie drooped her eyebrows a bit and narrowed her eyes slightly, drawing a laugh from Shego as she walked up to Triple-S and gave him a hug.

"Yup." the pale green toned woman replied easily, her tone one of a woman talking more about a relative than a former lover, "Kimmie's in the office, Pops, she wants to go over a few things with you and Wade about your suits."

"Very well," he concluded firmly, glancing at Ron, "Shall we, Ronald?"

"Sure, Francisco…" Ron answered, his slightly worried gaze saying he felt the tension coming off of Bonnie as well, "See you guys in a few."

"Shall I come with you or sta-…" Junior started, before Triple-S raised a hand with an easy smile.

"We will be alright, my son," the elder Senior assured jovially, "I'm sure you three young people have things to talk about."

Bonnie opened her mouth again, this time to suggest they go with them, but the security consultant's chuckle and her bright, mirth filled green eyes turning to Bonnie stopped her once again, "Anyway, yeah, I will; he's a ditz, but a loveable one…" Bonnie's eyes relaxed a bit, but she did purse her lips when the former thief added, "And takes to training very well."

"Hello again, Shego!" Junior said and enveloped her in an easy hug. Bonnie, her worries beginning to surface again, was just drawing in a breath to complain about the hug when she saw Shego roll her eyes and shake her head, before returning the hug with no desire Bonnie could see beyond that of two friends.

"Hey, Junior." Bonnie's impending rage and concern dissipated like a mist on a summer morning when Shego reached up to muss the still meticulously kept coif atop his head. Junior jumped back as if he'd been zapped with a stun gun, reaching up to fix his hair when Shego let out a delighted laugh, something that startled both Bonnie and Junior. "Leave it, you goofball! It looks better a bit mussed." She glanced at Bonnie and winked, murmuring, "I'm sure your wife'll agree."

Bonnie felt the instinctual urge to disagree with a woman who had been with Junior before her, but as she gazed up at the, honestly, only slightly mussed hair, she was forced to agree. Her still pursed lips twisted into a half grin, and she walked up to her husband, reached up and mussed a different section, then smoothed the mussing up just a bit. "There…" she nodded, "She has a point, Baby, you do look better if you seem a bit more… Active."

"Is there a mirror somewhere close?" Shego laughed again, this time drawing a somewhat mollified Bonnie into the chuckling as Junior began looking around the room, "I should like to see this change for myself."

"Down the hall, right side." Shego chuckled, shaking her head and looking at Bonnie as she let out what she thought was an unobtrusive sigh, "Good work with SSJ, Bonnie." Bonnie nodded, and Shego smirked, "I knew the boy had potential, just never thought it'd come out with being a hero like it did with Drew…"

"Well," Bonnie said, remembering one of the early conversations with Kim, "He's cut back on_ Le' Goop_… And thanks to a conversation K and I had, well…"

"Oh?" Shego raised an eyebrow, "Not surprised… I made him stop using it when we were training, the smell was horrible in my jet, but he did seem to be a bit more with it after that… But who knows?" With a shrug she sat down at the small table in the kitchen, indicating the chair opposite her. She schooled her face into a more serious one as Bonnie sat, stating without preamble, "I know you were hiding it well from Junior, but you really need to calm down about him." Bonnie blinked several time, drawing a faint smirk to Shego's otherwise serious face, "You're new to the hero biz, but if you're ever in a situation without your helmets, you need to keep your emotions better hidden, it could help you bluff or hide what_ your _plans are from the bad guys…"

"Was it really_ that _obvious?" Bonnie complained, looking away from the beautiful woman across from her. She was, honestly, completely jealous of Shego's body, especially in that form fitting suit of hers, and her face, which wouldn't be out of place on a Grecian statue. She felt her old insecurities trying to crop up when Shego laid them to rest with a few simple comments.

"Yeah, but you don't have to worry about Junior." At Bonnie's worried cocking of her head, Shego expounded with a devilish smirk, "One, you're hot as hell, as attractive as_ Kimmie _is… Or that French model, Nicolette. And from what Princess and Doofus said? Now you're a lot like a more intense version of Kimmie when it comes to attitude, instead of a supremely self-centered version; that'll account for a lot with Junior, I'm sure." Bonnie's eyes widened in shock, since she, like many, considered both Kim and Nicolette to be among the most beautiful women in the world. She also fought a blush at being compared favorably to Kim, instead of being found wanting in comparison. And with the_ way _Shego had said Kim's name, the brunette wanted to ask a question, but was unable to prod further as Shego spoke again, "Plus, he's completely into you. He may look, but I can see it in his eyes: he's comparing everyone to you… And I'd bet my house here in Amsterdam that you're in the number one spot."

"You're sure of that?" Bonnie asked, a bit more snippily than she'd intended, "Sorry, I'm just…"

"Worried he might wanna start screwin' around with someone else, like me?" Shego shrugged, smiling with a mix of amusement and fond melancholy. "He won't, trust me. He's like his dad in that way. You ever see the pictures of Triple-S and his Sylvia?" Bonnie nodded, surprised that Shego had seen them, considering how private she knew Triple-S could be about some things. "Yeah, for all his flakiness and ditziness, he's just like his daddy: a one woman man."

"He's…" Bonnie said, her mind in a few different places, if the loving smile, almost countered by a blush showing through her tanned skin, were any indication, "He's my love…"

"I understand,_ believe _me, I do!" Shego chuckled, knowing those emotions from her past, and so recently. With a smile, she reached across the table to place a hand on Bonnie's shoulder, "He's a good kid… Energetic, a quick learner and I'm damn jealous of you considering that staying power of his!" Bonnie couldn't help but giggle at the blunt declaration, relaxing as Shego withdrew her hand. She almost tensed again as a devilish smirk crossed the older woman's features, "I mean, I'll grant you, he pops off quick, but keeps going like that one bunny…"

She shrugged, her smirk fading to an understanding smile, "Now, if both Junior or I were single, or he was in an open,_ unmarried _relationship and_ I _was single or in a similarly open relationship, I'd go for him… But I have_ never _gone after someone when I was in an exclusive relationship and I've never gone after someone else who was, either." She let her smile widen slightly, "And I'd never consider sleeping with a married person on the side; the mistress thing is_ so _not me!" She pursed her lips and added in a thoughtful tone, "Unless you count them being married to their job with that…"

At that Bonnie giggled like the schoolgirl she'd been less than six months earlier, or three, if you counted summer school. "That's horrible…" the brunette said, biting her lips to keep from saying more.

"Eh,_ c'est la vie_," Shego shrugged, before leaning forward and raising an eyebrow, "So, does he still do that thing with his tongue?" Bonnie blinked, knowing exactly what Shego was referring to, but trying to appear innocent despite her earlier blush coming back and deepening alarmingly. Shego obviously knew better as her smirk became positively evil, but she played along, "Y'know, where he tenses it up and just lets the tip flip about like he's being shocked with a stun gu-…"

"Yes!" Bonnie interrupted in a strident screech, covering her face with her hands, "And it's more like he's rolling an 'R' against my… Well, y'know… Than stun gun!"

"Oooo, good point…" Shego nodded, pursing her lips thoughtfully, "He have that thing about kissing with you?"

"Huh?" Bonnie queried, cocking her head at Shego in confusion, "We kiss all the time…"

"Heh, is he any good?" At Bonnie's nod, Shego let out a low whistle, "And you're worried about him cheating?" Shego let out a full guffaw, shaking her head, "He told me once, 'Miss Shego, I would like to kiss you, but you said you were not looking for the permanent love. I shall never kiss a woman with my passion that I do not plan to be with for all time!'" Bonnie's eyes widened again, and it was Shego's turn to nod, "So, yeah, you got him around your little finger for as long as you want him."

"And why are we surprised by this?" the voice of Kim Possible made Bonnie jump a few inches off of her chair, drawing a snide sounding retort from the brunette.

"Make a bit more noise, K!" She raised her nose to look down its length at Kim, drawing a sardonic smile and a roll of the eyes from the red-head. After holding the pose for a moment, both she and Kim started laughing, Kim taking a seat by Shego and leaning against the older woman in a very familiar manner.

"Well, we got everything I was worried about hashed out." Kim groused good naturedly, sighing happily as Shego placed a possessive arm around her and pulling her closer, "I hope we don't have to call you guys in, but I agree with Vincente and Hendrick: this is too important not to have options." She reached up, seemingly in an unconscious manner, to grasp Shego's hand in her right as if it were one of Ron's.

Bonnie nodded in reply to Kim, but only barely understood the import of Kim's comments. She was busy trying to hold back the comment on the tip of her tongue at the little display that Kim didn't seem to realize she was putting on. Shego glanced between the two teens and, with light dancing in her eyes, chuckling out, "Told you I'm not single…"

"I thought you wanted to wait before letting too many people know about us, Sha-ego…" Kim said in a teasing, sing-song voice, drawing an exasperated sigh from the older woman.

"First, I'm getting used to the name, so stop with that, it sounds weird!" she reached up with her free hand to gently flick Kim's nose with her fingertip, pulling it back when Kim tried to bite said fingertip, "As for being open… Well, after telling a van full of ninja about it," she snorted at the seeming nonsensicality of the statement, "I figure that, among you and Sport's friends, we could be just as open!"

"Well," Kim shrugged, leaning up to give Shego a small kiss on the lips, "I'm happy." She glanced over at the open mouthed Bonnie, a smirk similarly as devilish as Shego's from a moment earlier sliding into place, "What, B? I_ do _remember you asking if I'd done experimenting in anything other than music or alcohol when we were at_ La Isla Senior_, so you have no reason to be shocked!"

"But…" Bonnie blinked, shaking her head like a wet hound, "I was just_ kidding _about that!"

"Oh, I know." Kim snuggled into Shego a little closer, trying not to giggle at her once enemy, now friend before her, "But, well… Things happened; Ron and I fell for She-… For_ Shay_, and vice versa." She glanced up at Shego and sighed happily when the older woman nodded in agreement.

"Wow…" Bonnie shook her head in wonder a smile somewhere between girlish teenage gossip hound and a grown woman concerned for a friend, "Guess that silly-ass saying of yours_ is _accurate…"

Kim held up a hand and made a 'fifty-fifty' gesture, then sat up and regarded Bonnie seriously, "You heard we have an interview on Summer Gale's interview show?" Bonnie nodded, and Kim took a deep breath, "Well… Since WWEE's Agent Delta tried to out us and use it as an attack, we've decided to come out about our relationship on her show Thursday night."

"Oh…" Bonnie's eyes widened, then she let out a sound parents the world over knew: the high pitched squeal of a girl happy for a friend, "That's completely and totally awesome, K!"

"Hey…" Ron griped as he and Junior stepped into the kitchen, "Some of us want to keep our hearing!"

"Junior, you'd better not say a word!" she muttered, before turning a happy expression back to Kim, somehow taking Ron into her comment with that one sweeping gaze, "As to you three, that news is just awesome, guys…" She glanced about the kitchen, raising an eyebrow as she saw two more people walking in with her father-in-law, "Hiro?"

"Hello, Bonnie-chan." Hiro said as he bowed to her, his face glowing with an odd pride. He had decided, for the duration of time before the mission, to strip off his _shinobi shōzoku_, so his walking between the safehouses was less suspicious, "Congratulations on your nuptials."

"Thanks, Hiro." Bonnie blushed slightly, giving him a look that spoke of how thankful she was for his discretion. She'd worried Junior might be a touch jealous, since they'd met one of her ex-boyfriends in Upperton once… It hadn't been a good meeting and the brunette was still thankful that the man had thrown the first punch, but nonetheless, it wasn't the best thing for Bonnie's nerves at the prospect of meeting other ex-boyfriends.

She needn't have worried, however; while Junior had stared in mild shock at the tall ninja, the look passed quickly. Junior walked up to the man with an honestly curious expression, "You are the Hiro that taught my Bonnie that lovely back massage technique?"

"Hai." Hirotaka nodded, and was almost surprised as Junior held out a hand to him. His own experience with Bonnie's ex-boyfriends had him concerned about the possible outcome with a_ current _boyfriend.

"I must thank you!" Junior enthused, shaking Hirotaka's hand enthusiastically when the Japanese man took his, "It is so _very _relaxing…" The two men finished their handshake, then Junior stepped back beside Bonnie, looking up at Hirotaka's hair, then down at the high quality, tight knit and tight fitting charcoal gray sweater. Then down to the fashionable slacks and shoes, and if anything, his smile widened, "A very handsome man, of taste in clothing_ and _hair? I can understand why she was interested in you, Mr. Hirotaka!"

"Thank you, Junior," Hiro inclined his head in a light bow, and everyone aside from Bonnnie and Triple-S seemed shocked to see Junior return it appropriately, "And I am glad to see she has found someone that was able to spend the time with her that I, unfortunately, could not."

"Am I really seeing this?" Shego wondered in a stage whisper to Bonnie, her tone filled with a sardonic lilt that drew a giggle from Bonnie.

"You wound me, Miss Shego!" Junior claimed, placing a hand over his heart melodramatically, "I am not the jealous lover…" He glanced over at Bonnie, who had raised an eyebrow, "But I have been know to be… Protective, is the word, yes?"

"Well, if you call laying out one of my ex's after managing to insult him into taking a swing at you?" Bonnie asked with an innocent smile.

"Not Brick, I hope?" Kim asked, chuckling at Bonnie's instant response.

"Hell no!" the brunette half laughed, half protested, "You think I'd want Flanner pissed at me and taking it out on my man?" She shook her head and laughed, "Nah, it was Morrissey… Y'remember, the b-ball center I dated over summer vacay after junior year?" Kim and Ron nodded, Ron wincing at how the break up had gone when Bonnie had told him to keep his hands to himself at the movie theater. "Well… We ran into him in Upperton one day after summer school classes…"

"Well," Kim nodded, her face a touch ugly in countenance, "I think that's enough said about that." She glanced at Junior and raised an eyebrow, smirking slightly, "Was it you that knocked out his upper left canine and pre-molar?"

"Yes." Bonnie and Junior said as one, earning a laugh from Shego.

"Good…" Kim said, drawing Shego's eyes to her, the older woman giving her a somewhat startled look. "What, Shay? He's a douche! He almost had a personal introduction to sixteen forms of kung-fu when he tried to force Tara to get drunk at a party during the summer…" Bonnie's face went pale, then flushed with anger upon hearing that. But Kim sudden smirk calmed her enough that she didn't snap at the red-head holding a hand up to stall any impending rant, "Alex's older brother was visiting and… Convinced him to leave."

"Wait…" Bonnie thought for a moment, then her eyes widened, "That senior when we were sophomores that would always wrestle around with Big Mike… And win half the time?"

"The very same." Ron chuckled, "Didn't even have to raise a finger, just told him to leave."

"Well, duh!" Bonnie giggled, "Carol Eressos is_ huge_!" She held her arms like a bodybuilder doing the so-called 'most muscular' pose, then broke down giggling, dragging Junior over to give him a hug. "Anyway, so… What's going on?"

"Well," Kim drew the word out, her tone becoming serious, "what we have planned is…"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"You're certain this…" The woman waved vaguely at the emptied section of a warehouse on the southwestern docks area of Schiedam, The Netherlands, "So-called plan of yours will work?" She shook her head in bemusement, putting her hand back into the leather long coat, styled directly after an officer's coat from former Soviet Union.

"You should have more faith in Gemini, Major!" the henchman now known as WWEE Agent Epsilon smirked, his West London accent clean and clear, "It'll work…" He glanced at the woman where she stood next to him, and the woman could feel his eyes on her. She knew he was wondering how a woman that had to be in her mid-forties could have a body like she had; he'd said as much, when he didn't think she could hear him.

She was tall, almost one hundred and eighty four centimeters in stocking feet, almost four centimeters taller in the flawlessly polished black boots she wore. Her long, muscular legs let to wide flaring hips, covered in a well fitted pair of black colored, khaki style trousers. Her waist was rather thin, and while her bosom was relatively modest, her breasts were still quite 'perky'. Her neck was long and graceful, her head covered with a fall of naturally wavy, raven black hair.

Her facial beauty was, in a simple word, stunning. She had gracefully arched eyebrows, smooth, high cheekbones of moderate width, graceful jawline and chin, set off with a pert, aristocratic nose. Her lips, while fairly narrow and thin, were pleasantly shaped, and had been described to her by many people as 'looking very kissable'. There was, however, an air of danger about her, some nearly predatory presence. Her head constantly moved, taking in her surroundings and her movements, while economical and almost machine-like, they were as smooth as the very machinery she sometimes resembled.

Most didn't sense exactly where the danger came from, but a few, such as the WWEE agent before her, did. With those big, beautiful, doleful eyes, with their brilliant sky blue color, it was easy to dismiss them as the source of the cold shiver many felt in her presence. However, staring into them was a way to understand what Freidrich Nietzsche meant when he said that the abyss gazes into you. There was a cold depth to them, as clear, as_ deadly_, as the plains surrounding the northern Siberian town of her birth. Those same eyes, with that same, cold calculation, now focused on Agent Epsilon, drawing a cold half smile from the woman as Gemini's second best agent swallowed in a manner he obviously thought was unnoticeable.

"I still say we should use your ranged weapons to take out the targets," Natasha Zaytsev, former Major in the Twelfth Detached Special Operations Brigade of the Soviet Union's Spetsnaz GRU sighed, "With these… What were they called?"

"Sonic Destructulator, Mark III." Agent Epsilon chuckled, obviously to dispel the brief bout of terror she'd instilled into him, patting one of the devices fondly.

"Yes… You could use these to so easily complete your mission… And all with minimal risk." Zaytsev, known by her men - and to most people - as 'The Major', once again looked over the five sonic weapons as Epsilons mounted them to their swivel mounts. "You have already stepped over the bounds of supervillainy, breaking the laws and making yourself borderline terrorists, so why bother dancing the edge you've so willingly stepped over?" The meter and a half long, twenty five centimeter in diameter weapon looked like a shotgun microphone set up mostly backwards. The dish was near the rear, just ahead of the buttstock and and trigger assembly, with three rings between the dish's largest diameter and the end of the weapon, each precisely twenty five centimeters from its closest neighbor.

The rings were raised along the outside of a solid metal, cylindrical chamber, and the end was covered with an odd, sine shaped dish. Out of the very tip was a thick, sharply pointed tuning fork, made out of some indefinable, dully shining material. The former Spetsnaz found the whole setup… Disturbing, on many levels. Shaking her head, she looked back at the man, still awaiting an answer.

After another moment, in which the Major merely stood patiently on the opposite side of the weapon, the newly promoted Agent Epsilon craned his neck around the butt of the weapon and smirked, "Because, my dear… We of the WWEE have our own duties to attend to with this action. As well, your assistance here will help demonstrate your value to Moiseyev… Just as your… Rivals for Moiseyev's money are going to suffer an… Unfortunate fate._ Especially _if they keep pushing Epsilon Four as they have. They shall take the blame for screwing up, whilst you and the WWEE shall look positively… Villainous. Which, as I understand it, is your intention? To appeal to Jack Hench's recruiters?"

The Major merely shrugged noncommittally; the action, a necessity in some instances when a soldier had to give a non-political non-comment did exactly what it was intended to do. Agent Epsilon lost interest in prodding her, turning his attention to the WWEE men scurrying about down below them. The Major fought back a predatory grin at the ease of manipulating the man. While his claim about her was, indeed, part of her goal, the man had not the first clue as to what she was after. In fact…

The sound of the piano passages from Pink Floyd's song, 'High Hopes' interrupted her thoughts and, briefly, drew a larger smile from the driven woman. She quickly schooled her face into an annoyed expression, letting out an obvious sigh before pulling her phone out. She made a mild show of looking at the caller, then got Agent Epsilon's attention, "I shall be in the office speaking to my ex-husband if I'm needed, Epsilon."

"Knock yourself out, Major!" Agent Epsilon gave a half hearted salute, before turning back to the work going on below.

"What is it, Anatoly?" she snapped into the phone as she passed through the doorway, her voice carrying across the empty warehouse. She slammed the door, before reaching into her jacket and pulling out a cigarillo case and a lighter. She lit the cigarillo and replaced the lighter in the pocket, incidentally activating a device that one of the Soviet Union's pet mad scientists had created just before its collapse. The device was similar to devices used by the likes of Global Justice, but had the advantage of sending out false information, in this case, an argument between the Major and her supposed ex-husband. The device was far from perfect, and didn't work as well as the most modern variations, but it was still effective in masking quiet conversations. Lighting the cigarillo and lowering her voice, she spoke urgently, "Is everything alright, Mik…"

"Yes, but we received a package, ma'am." The low contralto on the other end was tense, paranoid and, bluntly, scared. The fact that the woman had used a more formal form of address, instead of her first name, set off alarm bells in the Major's mind. However, due to her situation, she couldn't let it cloud her face, so to keep herself from becoming worried, she spoke with some bravado when she finally answered.

"And why are you calling me about it?" The Major's voice, despite her outward appearance, was tense, and she couldn't help but hope that it was an honest mistake on the part of the woman speaking to her.

"Because I need a counter-code from you to open the package." the woman on the phone commented, "It's an Omega-Zulu-One-One-One package."

"I see," the Major commented, "Well, out with it!"

"What is the most dangerous of wounded prey?" the voice on the other end asked sardonically, rather annoyed with the particular code set.

"The mosquito." The Major almost laughed at the tone of voice on the other end, but kept her tone, and thus her facial features, in the act of being annoyed. There was the sound of the package accepting the verbal counter to the challenge, followed by the rustling of paper. The Major's eyebrows rose fractionally upon hearing the light paper, which could only be flash paper, designed for irrevocable destruction of whatever was written on it. "That… Doesn't sound good, Mikaela…"

"It's… not ma'am." Mikaela Zaytsev murmured softly to the Major's, "The Vocational Guidance Counselor wishes… A word about the victor, ma'am." The Major swallowed and had to force her body not to stiffen. She blinked three times, not having expected_ that _particular code phrase.

"Gervais… Won." the Major replied after a pause of her own. There was a pause, before an understanding grunt came from the other end of the line; upon hearing it she continued, making sure her face looked disgusted and that it seemed she was trying to keep herself from yelling into the phone, "Where does she want me to meet her?" The very action she was mimicking wasn't too hard, considering she'd spent the last three years of her life working herself into her current position… On an assignment the recall order she'd just received might just have canceled._ There's a _lot_ of trouble coming my way in the next half hour over this, they'd best be happy!_

"Blind four, the bench third over from BD-One-One-Seven…" Mila confirmed in a worried tone, "Tasha… Be careful, love."

"You too, Mika…" the Major nodded, then reached into her pocket to remove another cigarillo and the lighter. She rolled her eyes, her head following her eyes in the exaggerated expression of someone about to lose their patience. Lighting the cigarillo, she again replaced the lighter in its pocket, this time turning off the device and allowing her anger at the situation to blossom into an outright display of rage. She then stormed from the office, raising her voice and screaming in heavily accented English, "Dzen khep deh damn keds en deh US vit' yoo, ef yoo haff to! Eh'm bessy wit' mehking shure dzey haff ethucation, yoo baztart!"

She snapped the cell phone closed almost hard enough to break the device, before shoving it back in her pocket. "Trouble in paradise?" the recently promoted Epsilon Two asked with a sarcastic lilt to his tone, earning a scathing glare that made him physically shrink back from the slightly taller woman.

"Eh vill return shurtly." she muttered coldly, turning away from the man.

"But…" Epsilon Two protested, "The operation should be starting within the hour! Agent Epsilon ordered no one was to leav-…"

"Tell hem," she hissed, "dzhat eff dzhey arriff behfore Eh do, fell free to do vhat yoo must."

"If you leave," Agent Epsilon, who had come running at her outburst, warned, "Then you forfeit your position in the operation." When she stared coldly at him, he shrugged, "It's how this was set up. We've kept Damyan and up to date on ou-…"

"Dzhen call deh dear Colonel in!" the Major snapped, "Eh care not!"

"You'll pay for betraying Lord Gemini, Major." Agent Epsilon promised, his voice dark. The Major didn't bother slowing, even as she heard the whine of the device the WWEE agent had been standing next to arming.

"Eh vould not, were Eh yoo." she intoned casually, "Eh haff my own men vatching me, ant yoo. Yoo'll be deat bevhore yoo can turn dze weapon."

"We'll find you and destroy you for this!" Agent Epsilon threatened, before deactivating the sonic blaster.

_You'll_ try_, you worthless pig! _she thought as she made her way to the stairwell leading down. Aloud, she called out to her second in command, Pytor Orlov, giving him a short, but relatively simple set of hand signals. He immediately called out in Russian, gathering the men and women she'd brought along together._ At least I will_ not _be party to the attempted killing of several heroes!_

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"The scouts have new information to us." Ken said from his position behind Yori in Yamanouchi's transport van, "One group of Russian mercenaries pulled out completely and another took their place." He glanced out the front of the van, which was situated behind and ahead of Vincente's heavily armored BMW SUVs, as they moved along the rather heavily congested A13 Motorway towards Rotterdam. The passengers followed his gaze, and could just see the interchange where they'd change from the A13 to the A20, which meant they were less than fifteen minutes from their destination.

"Which group pulled out?" Hirotaka asked, pursing his lips in concern.

"The group generally unknown to us." Ken answered, glancing over at Vincente, "They did, however, seem to be taking better care of Alfonso-san than this new group."

"Oh, really?" Vincente grated, his anger at the situation growing at the news.

"Hai," Ken growled slightly, his disgust at the situation plain, "This new group is using… Physical persuasion in an attempt to learn where Atcherkamp-san's family is being hidden."

"Bastards…" Hendrick hissed, "If I were not so interested in getting_ out _of the business…"

"We will give them an… Understanding, Hendrick." Vincente said with a cold, dark smile.

"There is more," Ken interjected, "They have four snipers in position, supposedly as backup. We have people in position to take them out if they attempt to act, and some of your men are in position in case ours are discovered, Atcherkamp-san. Balisteri-san's men are in position with the Upperclassmen in case they call in reinforcements, as well." He nodded towards the south, "Luckily, Wade-san was able to break the encryption the owners of the warehouse they are using has installed on their security system; they have set up five of their… Sonic Destructulator, you called them, Kim-sama?" Kim nodded, her face becoming clouded with anger for a brief moment.

"Calm down, Princess…" Shay murmured, reaching up to squeeze her shoulder gently.

"I'm fine, Shay." the red-head assured her, reaching up to return the squeeze to Shay's hand. She was worried, but if Shay was relaxed…

"So they still wish to end us and take Ronald and Shego hostage." Hendrick murmured, his face clouded in the same anger that Vincente's was.

"Those are my thoughts as well…" Hirotaka drew the words out, deep in thought, "But I have a feeling that something is happening within the mercenary ranks… If this new group has their own people watching over the proceedings, perhaps they wish to make a move of their own."

There were several nods from people in the van, and Kim let out a sigh of concern, "I've got a bad feeling about this…" The comment earned a grumpy sounding agreement from Rufus from his position on her shoulder, while her unconscious echoing Ron's very same phrase earlier in the day drew a chuckle from Yori, who glanced at an equally amused Ron. "What?" Kim asked, giving the two of them a stare.

"My apologies, Kim-chan." Yori said softly, amusement twinkling in her eyes, "But Ron-sama said the same thing earlier today before we met with Atcherkamp-san."

"Question?" Shay prodded, drawing their attention to her, "Why does everyone else call Kimmie and Ronnie 'sama', hell, Rufus gets called 'sama', too, yet you call her 'chan'?"

"Simple, Shay-san:" Yori chuckled again, "I was friends with Kim-chan before Ron-sama attained his mastery of the Mystical Monkey Power. It was my great honor be allowed to keep my close friendship with her, at her own insistence the first time we met again a week after the invasion." Yori turned slightly to Ron, "But, due to his position, and his connection and sharing of that position with Rufus, I shall always refer to Ron-sama and Rufus-sama as just that."

"You're somethin' else, Cherry Blossom…" Shay shook her head in amusement, not catching the blush that crossed her features due to her attention being forward.

"You get used to Sheegs' nicknames, Yori." Kim giggled, earning an agreeing nod and chirping laugh from Rufus. The little mole rat, seeing that the ninja's expression was stuck between embarrassment and an odd happiness at having earned a nickname from the former thief, gave her a double thumbs up.

"It is not that, Kim-chan." Yori whispered, not realizing just how keen Shay's hearing was, "It is that Eddy-kun calls me that, during… Um…"

"Well, Yori," Shay said in a deadpan tone, trying not to laugh at her expense, "If I were single, and you weren't with Ed, I'd probably have been using that to flirt, instead of just using it as a nickname." Shay's flippant comment earned a chuckle from Kim, Ron and Rufus, and a deeper blush from Yori as she stared at the pale mint hued woman. "Hey, you're hot!"

"Wha-…" Yori started, then looked at Kim. The red-head didn't realize she was nodding in agreement with Shay's comment, though she_ had _realized just how attractive Yori was when they'd seen her and Motor Ed in Munich. She was also giving Yori an appraisingly raised eyebrow and a knowing smirk, which helped Yori to understand just what, exactly, Shay was getting at. After a moment, she begged, "This is not an American style joke, is it?"

"I would say not." Hirotaka said easily, smiling slightly, "While it is still fairly uncommon in Japan, Yori-chan, women attracted to women is far from unknown to us, and it is more common in America."

"That's not…" Yori started to say, when several snickers echoed throughout the van, most notably from Ron. She began to glare, but before she could get truly annoyed, Shay turned back to her with a full blown smirk.

Hirotaka pursed his lips for a moment, shrugging as he remembered some of his time in America, "Such as Bonnie-chan's best friend, Tara. She was always looking at both men and women, I am surprised so few noticed…"

"Some of us noticed," Ron said, gesturing at Rufus with his thumb while shrugging, "but most people didn't think she was, 'cause of Bonnie's 'Food Chain' and all that." He shrugged again and laughed, "But Kim and Shay're right, Yori, you're hot, I'm sure if you paid attention to the_ way _people looked at you, instead of just the fact that they were looking at you…"

"I do…" she murmured, the blush that had been fading coming back, "It is just that… I know I am attractive, but I am not truly_ that _attractive, am I?"

"Well, on a scale of one to 'wearing little black dress would cause a ten car pile up', you're kinda like Kimmie, somewhere around a twenty car pile up." More snickers followed Shay's comment, and included a roll of the eyes and a quick kiss from Kim, before she continued. "Anyway, like I said, you're hot, and Eddy knows he's a lucky boy." Shay shrugged, then winked at the younger woman, "He's never called_ any _woman 'Angel', to my knowledge. And, well, since neither of us are single, you don't have to worry about me flirting_ too _hard." She shook her head as, again, Yori's almost vanished blush came back, literally biting her tongue for a moment to keep from teasing her. She glanced at Kim and smirked, "She's as fun to tease as you, Princess."

"Ha. Ha." Kim answered dryly, rolling her eyes and looking at Yori, "It's obvious that she's right, though… Ed may look at a lot of women, but for him to fall for you?" Kim shrugged, giving the slightly older ninja a very Kim Possible smile.

Shay chuckled as she stared out the van's front window, their destination, roughly eighty three kilometers by road from the safehouses they'd used, coming into view, "Besides, I wouldn't want Eddy to get the wrong idea; he's actually pretty cool when he's like he was when we ran into each other at Oktoberfest, but he's definitely_ not _the kind of guy I like dating." Yori opened her mouth to comment, but was cut off by Shay's version of the wrist Kimmunicator.

"You're almost there, guys!" Wade unintentionally interrupted, the device not showing his face as normal, since it was on its voice only setting.

"We noticed, Nerdlinger," Shay teased, the laugh in her voice taking the sting from her words, "but thanks for the heads up!"

"Well, then," Ken said with a tense chuckle in his voice, "I think that means the time for chatter, as you Americans say, is done?" Everyone nodded and began to double checked their gear.

Their plan, seemingly at odds with most of the people there, was quite aggressive. Instead of relying on stealth, as was the norm, they would rely on at first subterfuge, then a 'shock and awe' frontal assault. The warehouse was set with its sides more or less facing the cardinal points and had two 'floors', though the second floor was more an expanded width catwalk for extra storage. The upper floor was about five meters up from the first, and set up in what amounted to a stacked 'H'. The sections of the floor that equated to the 'stems' of the 'H' were each about six meters across, while the 'crossbars' were almost ten in width.

The warehouses were about one hundred meters wide by almost three hundred long, the rafters for the roof being almost nine meters from the first floor. The roof was slanted, the taller end being fifteen meters from the ground, while the shorter was barely taller than the rafters. It was a steel framed structure, with sunken loading docks to the east and two huge overhead doors for access to the west. The warehouse had a twin about seventy five meters to the north-northwest. Both were separated from the nearest waterway by a eight meter wide roadway and thirty feet of parking inside the warehouse's grounds.

What had been troubling for everyone was the nearby presence of several vantage points. Watchmen, snipers - or worse in some ways, people armed with RPGs or supervillain weapons - could easily hide within them. The main reason for the ninja scouts difficulty in securing the external scenes had been checking on each and every location they could within the four hour window, all without being seen. Luckily, all of the potential snipers or the like had been found and ninja scouts had put themselves into position to take them out if necessary.

The assault planning itself had hinged upon Wade getting into the location's security cameras. It had taken him some time, but he'd done it… With much reluctance, as he had a bad feeling about his difficulty in getting into the system. Nonetheless, he was watching the van on his monitors, and had already into the municipal computer system and ready to cut off power to the building. Five of the scout ninja were waiting near the well guarded, on-site generators, having managed to sneak a few small explosive devices in place that were just large enough to disable the devices.

In the van, the driver, Shizuru, and everyone else had night vision goggles in place, ready at either side of the van. They would wear them just long enough to compensate for the lack of vision when the lights dimmed, as it would take the lights with battery backup a few seconds to warm back up once the power was cut; even then, the night vision would help, as the emergency lights would provide splotchy light at best. Vincente, Shizuru and a lower ranked ninja, as well as Hendrick, Kim, Rufus, Kazuo and two other lower ranks were to dash to cover to either side of the van that Wade had found after hacking the security cameras. Ron, Hirotaka and three other ninja were prepared to dash out of the back, their targets two of the five Sonic Destructulators spaced on the second floor to the right of the open space.

Shay and Ken were to remain in the van long enough for the ninja to pull loose the 'sunroof' panel from the vehicle. That part of the plan Ron had argued against, insisting that if they used the Sonic Destructulators on the van that he and Shay would be the most likely to survive intact. Shay had countered, much to Ron's worried protest, that meant that at least one of them should be_ away _from the van, just in case. Kim's reluctant agreement had left Ron to give his assent, as worried as he obviously was for both the other woman he loved and the young man he was fast becoming friends with.

Yori, unsurprisingly, had volunteered to stay as well. She asserted that she owed Shay her life and that it would be her honor to guard the former thief's back with Ken when they assaulted the sonic weapon 'ahead' of their target area. Rufus had volunteered to stay as well, saying he wanted to get used to fighting with Shay.

As soon as Ken opened the sunroof, Shay planned to throw a ball of plasma through upwards, one she hadn't used since she'd been a part of Team Go - and a few practice throws earlier that night - to act as their opening salvo. It was a ball of mostly energy, one which she would toss up from the vehicle, and then detonate with a pure concussive blast. It would produce a blinding flash, just after the lights cut out, hopefully just as their foes eyes had adjusted to the absence of light… And before they could put on night vision goggles of their own.

"Here we go!" the driver, Shizuru, called out. She slammed her foot down on the accelerator, startling the five WWEE goons that had been holding up a hand in the signal to stop. Two of them in the truck's path dove out of the way, while the one of the other three used his stun staff to try and disable the vehicle. The staff was knocked out of his hands, but, luckily for the plan, the hardened electronics system of the van held.

The other two shot the vehicle with WWEE modified DeMenz Gruppe stunball guns, these capable of firing deadlier stun rounds similar to, but less powerful than, Shay's plasma. As the stunballs slammed their intense, concussive shocks against the armored side and rear door of the vehicle, Shizuru angled the van towards the side door of the warehouse. "Impact!" she called out in Japanese, her Kyoto-ben accent cold and hard. She relaxed her entire body except for the foot holding the accelerator and the two hands and one of the arms holding the wheel straight.

The van plowed into the doorway and wall at over one hundred and twenty kilometers an hour. The welded square tube steel frame surrounding the door and the thin sheet steel of the wall the only things in the van's path to the interior; the van's reinforced front bumper held, the door, doorframe and sheet metal wall did not. Shay, braced as she was and held in place by Kim and Ron, began powering up a plasma ball as the van's movements stabilized.

As soon as they hurtled into the building's interior, Shizuru threw the shifter into neutral, then shoved her foot down on the emergency brake. The van slowed steadily on the emergency brake's less efficient stopping power, and she called out, "Go!" She pushed herself out of the driver's door, rather surprised to see that Vincente had actually beat her to the ground, his large frame launched towards their cover by still powerful legs. One of the younger, lower lower ranked ninja powered towards cover right behind them.

Kim followed Hendrick out the left door, just ahead of Kazuo and another two lower ranked ninja, while Hirotaka, Ron and the last three ninja leapt from the rear. "Now!" Wade said urgently, the lights dimming in the warehouse after the sound of keys being tapped. Immediately after, three subdued pops sounded, followed by the sound of three diesel powered generators - called gensets by most - trying to start up. That's when the carefully orchestrated plan started.

Ken hauled on the trapdoor like sunroof of the van, the door opening as if on a hydraulic ram…

An instant later, Shay had shoved herself upwards from her kneeling position, throwing her arms upwards and unleashing the plasma ball…

Shouts of alarm and orders to fire echoed through the interior of the building, just as a far more compact, duller colored but much faster ball of plasma flew upwards and perfectly intersected with the first…

Everyone from the van ducked into their respective sections of cover or made their way towards the second floor, making sure their eyes were pointed away from the plasma ball…

Screams of pain as eyes were seared by light, and a few yells of shock - quickly cut off those men fell from the second floor after being blinded by the light - and angry growls to suck it up followed the blast of light.

Just after that, several battery powered emergency lights, set up to come on if the main power and backup gensets failed, sprang to life, bathing the warehouse in an odd patchwork of light and dark.

Shay, Ken and Yori were already out of the vehicle, all three taking their place on the roof. Shay grabbed the older of the two ninja by his waist, launched her grapnel towards the rafters and started the retract function, before performing another arm motion to disconnect the grapnel's grabber arm. Yori, having a grapnel similar in function, if not form, to Kim's old hair dryer grapnel - a gift from Kim not long after Hana had defeated the Yono - using it to follow the other two, her actions timed precisely with Shay's. The former thief let go of the man as they began their descent, shoving him slightly to her right.

Shay and Ken landed to either side of the canon that had been directly down towards the entrance door, with Yori flying up and over it, kicking the gunner in the face and into unconsciousness. Ken took out one of the other two men beside the weapon and Shay took out the device proper with plasma sheathed claws. "Get your night vision goggles on you moro-…" a voice called out, cut off with brutal efficiency by a sidekick from Shay.

"One maddy gun down!" Shay yelled as the Sonic Destructulator fell in half, its ragged edges glowing from her power.

"Epsilon Four!" one of the goons to their left yelled, only to be struck by a kick from one hundred and twenty six pounds of swift moving red-head. Kim used the impetus of her kick to spin in place and deliver a kick to the man's compatriot. The man was either one of the more skilled men in Gemini's stable, or the luckiest henchman in the world, as he managed to not only dodge Kim's kick, but deliver a strike back at her. His foot lashed out, catching the red-head in the midriff and driving her back almost two meters.

Unfortunately for him, the other ninja that had followed Kim and Kazuo out of the vehicle was there, striking him along the side of the head. As he spun around, Kazuo kicked the front of the Sonic Destructulator the goon had been manning, driving the device hard enough to snap back and into the top of his head.

"Two down!" Kim cried as she used her laser lipstick to replicate Shay's actions a moment earlier. As planned, Kazuo swept out, checking the second floor storage areas for additional WWEE goons.

"That's three!" Ron called from the opposite side and down several meters, the blond running from the sparking device, two WWEE goons hot on his heels. Those two were bowled over by one of the three lower ranked ninja that had come out of the rear of the van, the teenaged girl taking them out with quick efficiency as Hirotaka took out the men surrounding the fourth device.

"Four down!" Hirotaka called out as he sliced the device in half with his katana. He then mimicked Kazuo's actions in checking his side of the warehouse's second floor.

"We have the fifth!" the final two ninja called out, the goons manning the sonic weapon having tried fleeing from the first ninja of the duo. He was as big as Brick Flagg had ever been, and moved almost as fluidly as Hirotaka. They had been dispatched by his partner, a man about Ron's size. The big ninja had literally torn the device from its moorings and snapped it over his knee as he called out about the device's destruction.

"We have seven henchmen down on this floor!" Vincente called out.

"They were not too difficult." Hendrick agreed, earning a couple laughs from the ninja with him and Vincente.

"This was too easy!" Vincente muttered, followed by a foul curse in Italian, "What is going on here? Where is my son?"

"We have a tablet computer over here…" Shay called out, biting her lip in worry, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up. "Looks like it was abandoned pretty quick, we're going to grab it and move back to the van. Maybe we can hook one of the Kimmunicators up to it and see if we can get anything!"

"Hrnk?" Rufus cocked his head, sniffing at the air. He got Shay's attention, murmuring "Sour milk…" to her. Shay blinked at him, and he glanced about to make sure no one could see, then signed, "When I was with Kim, I smelled a man that smelled like sour milk. I smell it again, and will check it out."

"Be careful, Rufus…" Shay nodded at him, before turning back to the table computer.

"Shego, let us know if you find anything." Vincente called out as he and the ninja with him moved towards the warehouse's loading docks, "We are checking the office, we shall keep everyone up to date as well!"

"Be careful, Vincente…" Hendrick called after him, waving the ninja with him towards the van, "This is troubling-…"

"AP mines!" Kazuo bellowed, his voice high with tension as he dove towards Kim and the younger ninja near their overwatch position…

**Author's Notes**

Well, another chapter down, hope everyone liked it! Slow beginning, but important things discussed, at one level or another. Agent Delta's starting over, and Motor Ed's plannin' on crashin' the party, and he's bringin' some_ awesome _backup, seriously! The Upperclassmen are on board and we get a bit of background on Bonnie and, ironically, Shego at the same time! And, wait, what's this? That's an awfully familiar code set calling away the Major. And soon after that, the action starts up, with much ass kicking to be had… And it all seemed to be a setup! Oh, no…

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work! And remember: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Foreword**

Well, here's chapter 9! Sorry, once again, for the delay, but real life snuck up and bit my flow/feel beta, Neo the Saiyan Angel, on the rear end. As much as I love writing this fic for everyone out there reading it, though, real life trumps online life. Anyway, on to the review reply!

Jimmy1201: heh, well, when ya work with a group that's used to doin' the dirty on everyone, it's kinda to be expected, non? I am a firm believer in back story, though I do hope that my inclusion of it hasn't slowed the fic down unnecessarily… And, well, the whole breaching team seems to be in quite a quandary, don't they? Thanks for the comment on Junior, I really do enjoy writing him (as well as Shego, Motor Ed, Rufus... Hell, most of the KP character gallery!)…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Motor Ed looked down at his cell phone and grumbled. "Hey, dudes and dudette, serious change of plans!" he called out, letting out a huff of irritation, "We_ totally _have to change our destination from Amsterdam to Schiedam!"

"What has happened?" Mr. Markus asked concernedly, loosening his tie slightly in his worry.

"Some douche seriously screwed up and kidnapped someone," Ed said with a confused mix of emotions on his face, "And my babe and the crew're all goin' down there now!"

"Dzen I shall inform zhe pilot." DeMenz said with a sure nod, his accent coming through more noticeably as his excitement ramped up, "I am sinking zhey shall not beink expecting backups?"

"_Seriously _doubt it, dude!" Ed chimed in with a chuckle, "Like, my babe and the crew're doin' a reverse ambush on 'em! With Red, Green Babe and Blondie doin' the ambush, we probably won't be needed, but I_ seriously _gotta have my angel's back!"

"That's perfectly understandable, Ed." the Clockwork Knight said as he grasped the hand of his partner, _Diebfluch_. His electronically deepened voice still easily conveyed his own concern and understanding as he continued, "And, with my past experience in the military, I know that no plan survives contact with the enemy intact."

"Yeah," Ed nodded, "And Murphy is a_ seriously _heinous dude, too!"

"Who is 'Murphy'?" Mr. Markus asked in such a sincere tone that Ed found himself laughing. The act brought a slight moue of annoyance to the Swiss man's face, to which_ Diebfluch _was quick to intervene.

"Murphy from the old American adage of 'Murphy's Law', Mr. Markus," her very slight German accent emphasized the embarrassed smile on her lips, "My first experience hearing about it was similar to yours, as irony would have it. My dear late husband, who had much more experience with Americans, and the man who now wears his armor explained it to me. While the original was much longer, it has been simplified to say, 'Whatever can go wrong,_ will _go wrong!' And many people refer to the law as if it is this Mr. Murphy's fault to this day."

"I see?" Mr. Markus smiled, his oddly cadenced English still throwing off Ed somewhat, "I can understand why you laughed, Mr. Lipsky!"

"Yeah, sorry, Mr. Markus, dude." Ed looked a touch chagrined, something that he would not have been capable of before meeting Yori, "I'm seriously still gettin' used to people from other continents totally not being all up to date with American slang 'n' stuff!"

"It's all good, Motor Man!" Clockwork chuckled, shaking his head, "At least you're learning! I'm_ still _gettin' used to that, and I've been in Europe for_ years_!"

"Ve are only being ten minutes from der Rotterdam - Der Hague Airport," DeMenz reported as he walked back up front, "And I, as you voult say, dropped your name, Clockwork. Ve shoult have a police presence to help smooth our vay to zhe location!"

"Hey, Hanz-man!" Ed said in a startled tone, "D'ya know what kinda totally badass police vehicles they have 'round here? Like, trucks 'n' stuff?"

"I am not sure." DeMenz pursed his lips, "But ve coult ask! Vhat do you have in mind?"

"Well, I have an idea," Ed gave them all a smile those who knew him as a villain would find all too familiar, "But we'd need something seriously righteous, like those newer armored trucks Lenco has, man!"

"I see…" DeMenz said, scratching his chin, "Shall ve call zhem up to be seeing if zhey have zomezink you would be liking to use?"

"Yes!" Ed cried, giving an impromptu air guitar, "Ye-e-e-e-e-eah! Totally time for Motor Ed to play the knight! Seriously!"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

The Russian-made mines were two different types from the same direct line of directional anti-personnel mines, the MON-100 and MON-200. Their design was that of a short cylinder with a wide face that was dished outwards slightly. The smaller mine's front face was filled with four hundred steel rods, with nine hundred in the larger. While they were called anti-personnel mines, they could easily damage, or if close enough, outright_ destroy _a lightly armored military vehicle. The number in the name was indicative of the range that was considered a guarantor of injury to a given target… And everyone on the upper floor except for Ken, Yori and Shego were within five meters of the mines, while_ all _of them were within an intricately planned out killing field. That killing field covered roughly half of the level's area, and had the mines angled back such that anything within three meters of the second level's floor was going to get hit.

Kim was already over the railing by the time Kazuo reached where she'd been standing and the younger ninja was just topping the railing. Kazuo tackled the younger ninja the rest of the way over, their combined weight allowing them to sink below the floor's level just in time to avoid the blast and shrapnel front of the mines. In all, there were six MON-100 and nine MON-200 directional anti-personnel mines that went off in the next second and a half.

Hirotaka had spotted another line of the circular, standing mines - hidden by light detritus such as packing paper and scraps of wood, some of which had fallen from the mines thanks to their rather spectacular entrance - an instant after Kazuo and, somehow, managed to jump above the blast of explosives and the steel rods they threw out.

Ron, having been moving with the young ninja that had followed him to meet up with Hirotaka, had an instant of panicked worry as he reached for the teen girl that had gone with him, before he launched himself and the girl straight up, much like Hirotaka had.

The two ninja that had taken out the fifth device, somehow, managed to have luck much like the Mystical Monkey Master; although they were directly five and a half meters in front of one of the larger MON-200 mines, the mine had been situated behind a large crate. The crate, filled with a backup genset for the warehouse, blocked the approximately one hundred and thirty steel rods that would have struck them as they dove over the second floor's railing.

Shay, Yori and Ken, however, were stuck in a rather untenable position. When Kazuo screamed his warning, the former thief's already high adrenaline spiked to nearly unparalleled levels. Time seemed to slow, and she easily judged the distances available to them. She knew they were too far from the ledge leading to the first floor, too far from the mines to jump over their blast and shrapnel and likely right in the cone of fire of at least two of the mines. Shay did the only thing she could think of, hoping that Yori and Ken would follow suit.

She flared her plasma and dove over the tablet with her arms out above her head, her hands held as if in a hand-clasped stretch. However, her fingers interlocked with the fingertips pointing 'up' relative to her position, the claws of her suit ready to tear into the second level's concrete floor. Her plasma bore an oddly dull look as compared to normal; there was far more black within the green flare than was normal, an indicator that it was almost pure concussive energy._ I _really_ hope this floor's less than a foot thick, _she thought as she dove forward,_ or my arms'll break before we're torn apart!_

As soon as she struck the floor, she let out a scream, the forceful exhalation helping her to unleash the plasma down from her fingertips. She felt an instant of elation as her fingertips broke through the concrete roughly eight inches past the floor, immediately forcing the plasma to her palms before swinging her arms out to the side similarly to the power movement of the butterfly stroke.

The plasma, concentrated as it was in her palms after breaking through the concrete, caused a half meter in the floor to either side of her shoulders and a little over a quarter meter to her front and back from her hands to explode away from her. She felt more than heard one of the two Yamanouchi ninja right behind her, whichever one it was almost getting a facefull of her size nine boots.

She felt a mix of shock and relief as she somersaulted so as to land on her feet when she saw Ken above her, already tucked in preparation to match her move. Just beyond him was Yori, jumping through the impromptu bolthole feet first, her_ tessen _fans flared wide and angled above her head to deflect any shrapnel, yet held lightly enough that they could close when they met the edge of the hole… Or they could slip from her finger with a shrapnel strike, without taking her fingers with it!

Shay was just about to touch the ground - her hands up to help Ken angle himself one way, and shove her out of Yori's way when she came down - when the deafening sequential blast tore through the warehouse. She saw Yori's_ tessen _already beginning to fold when the first red hot rods began to flash past the hole above them. Yori's fans were struck by at least two dozen rods each, yet amazingly, the Lorwardian sourced steel was merely dented, otherwise holding firm.

Both fans were wrenched from her light, knowledgeable grip, but luckily, other than some soreness in her fingers Shay knew she'd be fine. She glanced towards the area where the van stopped, seeing Kim, Kazuo and the three lower ranked Yamanouchi ninja that had been on her side of the warehouse's second floor. She felt a sudden panic welling up inside her, bolstered by that sickeningly familiar voice whispering to her,_ You finally admitted feelings for him and now he's _dead_, isn't he?_

"No…" the pale woman whispered, both to the voice and her own fears, her vision trying to blur as she looked upon the scene.

_I _told_ you it would happ-… _the voice started, but was cut off by a worried sounding voice from what had to be the rafters of the building.

"Everyone sound off!" Ron's voice filtered through the sound of a few small fires and settling debris, traces of panic threading his shout, "Sound off!"

"Ken, Yori and I're fine and Rufus should've been out of the area!" Shay called out, the relief at hearing Ron's voice palpable in her own. She shook her hands to try and stop the pins and needles sensation of her power repairing several sprains from her recent exertion, "But I nearly broke both hands getting us out of that shit!"

"Is everyone alright?" Hirotaka yelled out, startling everyone, "Stoppable-sama? I can barely hear you!"

"We're fine, Hiro!" Ron bellowed, then glanced around the upper floor, "I wouldn't want their repair bill, though!"

"We're all fine down below!" Kim yelled, her face a mix of pale shock and absolute lividity, "But what about the henc-…" Shay followed Kim's now horrified gaze and felt her stomach churn in its own mix of shock and rage. There, not two meters from Kim was the grizzly sight of one of the henchmen from the upper floor. He'd been literally torn to shreds and what was left of his body had landed on the front windscreen of the van, leaving a horrid trail of ichor and offal while sliding to the floor.

Shay lost track of time for a few seconds, and was surprised when she realized she had Kim in her arms. Capitalizing on the moment, she turned the teen's gaze away from the sight, stroking her hands up and down Kim's back._ Do you really think your hug and soft hands on her back will help her? I'm sure her boyfriend would be much better suited for it… _If_ he's not enjoying himself too much, that is! _She knew what the voice was referring to, having seen Ron holding the young woman that had followed him from the van. The voice began speaking on the subject again, but a mental roar of defiance silenced it, giving her a bit of a headache as she forced her mind to ignore the deadly soft murmurings.

Shay looked up again, the sight of Kim's fiancé holding the young ninja girl in his arms sending yet another surge of relief through her. After all, she knew that Ron was, like his fiancée, a hero. Sighing softly, she looked up at him and called out, "Ron, any survivors among the henches?"

"Um…" Ron hedged for a moment, glancing about below him. His face turned a bit pale, but he shook his head to force the words out despite his revulsion, "I… I think three of the henches up top are still alive and well, a couple're wounded… But the rest…"

They could hear from the tone of his voice that the remains in front of the van weren't the only ones like that. "We're coming down, we'll bring the wounded and living ones with us." The blond looked to Hirotaka and signaled as best he could with one hand in Yamanouchi's code.

"Hai, Stoppable-sama." Hirotaka replied, dropping down and heading towards the two closest living henchmen. In all, three henchmen from the second floor somehow managed to survive unscathed by the mines, one with minor wounds, and one with likely fatal wounds.

"Where's Rufus?" Kim asked suddenly, looking at Shay in a near panic.

"He was investigating somewhere else up top," Shay sighed, "By the time the mines went off, he should've been out of range, like I said a moment ago."

Kim blinked as if she hadn't heard Shay mention Rufus, and looked about to protest when Ron called out softly to her, "KP, he's alive and fine…" When she looked at him, carrying one of the living henchmen over one of his shoulders, "Trust me, it's got something to do with the MMP… We know if the other's hurt or not."

"Okay…" Kim sighed, watching the young ninja that he had saved helping Hirotaka with one of the wounded.

The young ninja in question clutched at her stomach when she was done setting the man down, looking away from him and the sight of the body next to the van. She had managed better than most of her contemporaries among the younger ninja, who had been forced to loosen their hoods and relieve the contents of their stomachs. Her skin, at least that visible through the slit in her hood, was nonetheless pale, and her eyes shone with unshed tears. "I… I have never…" She tried to say, but just shook her head in disgust and helpless bemusement, "Never seen something like this… This is…"

"It was hard the first time Ron and I came upon a body helping with search and rescue after a natural disaster…" Kim murmured from her comfortable spot in Shay's protective arms, "Unfortunately, it doesn't get easier… Um… What's your name?"

"K-Kieko, Possible-sama…" the girl said, turning to Kim and focusing the entirety of her attention onto the red-head to avoid seeing the carnage surrounding them.

"You're doing a slammin' job of holding it together, Kieko." Kim nodded at her, "It's never easy to see… And, until recently, I'd_ never _seen something like this from violence…" Kim shuddered slightly, remembering seeing two men torn to shreds by high velocity ordinance and a man killed by an allergic reaction to purified capsaicin.

"But… Why?" Kieko asked, gesturing vaguely at the body, the upper level above them, the sheet metal walls above them, filled now with holes from the shrapnel, "Why kill their own men?"

"Could this have been Gemini?" Kim asked as she began to compose herself. Shay could see it on her face; her essential Kimness was coming out, taking control. Triaging the area with a glance, Kim spared her lover a look, silently requesting a response.

"I don't think so, Princess…" Shay replied after a moment of thought. "Even though he's pretty kill-happy, even _he_ has standards! He tends punish failure within his organization with a swift death, always within the bounds of the Supervillain's and Henchmen's Union rules, and even follows them with heroes. This?" She gestured about them, shaking her head in disgust, "This was just… Messy. Hell, downright militaristic…"

"True…" Kim murmured, nodding at Shego's conclusion, "I guess, then, we'd better get the wounded taken care of." She glanced back at the remains sitting in front of the van, her face changing before Shay's eyes. The revulsion was still there, but it was subdued quickly by an anger the security consultant hadn't seen since the red-head had kicked her into the Li'l Diablo's control tower, "When we find who did this, we're going to make them pay…"

"That is a plan, Kim-chan." Yori said from Shay's left. The woman glanced at the ninja, nodding in agreement, "Let us hope one of these men has information on Alfonso-san's whereabouts…"

An instant later, the Kimmunicator on Kim's wrist started up by itself, Wade's worried voice screaming, "Guys, is everyone alright?"

Kim whipped the device around and up, the rage in her face startling Wade, "We're fine, Wade, but we need to find out what happened to Alfonso!" Kim's tone brooked no arguments.

"Kim, I'm sorry." Wade mumbled quietly, "They were using government level spoofing programs, they tricked me…" His voice was tense, but with a quick, deep breath, he continued in a sure tone, "But I switched up my own programs and I'm back-tracking them…" Wade typed a few more things, then looked at Kim, his voice stronger when he went on, typing away as if a man possessed. "I've also got the police and emergency services informed."

"I may have something that will help…" Vincente came stalking up to the small group, his face as livid at the needless violence as Kim's had been. He tossed a knife on the floor, spitting on it, and held out a letter.

Ron snatched the letter and read it aloud, "To whom it may concern… Or those that lived past our little surprise! We have Alfonso now and we will give you two options. Quick and painless, or slow, in which case, those that matter will receive his bits and pieces over the course of the next year or until we have all of you. If you wish his passing quick and painless, you will stay in this building and we shall all call Toni Balisteri together, to inform him of his options. You have five minutes to make your peace, then we shall arrive."

"What the hell?" Shay growled, shaking her head, "This kind of shit has been against the agreements for… For_ years_! Even the _Triads_ abide by those agreements!"

"Yes, 'The Accords'." Hendrick said as he walked over, shaking his head, "There are some that push the boundaries, but this?" He held his hands out palms uppermost, disgusted, "Even the Mexican cartels weren't quite this… Desperate until near the end."

"Um," Ron interjected, pointing at the knife, "No offense, Vincente, but…"

"That belongs to a specific group…" Vincente sighed, "They used to be mercenaries, but have been loosely affiliated with the Moiseyev_ Bratva_." He nodded at the knife, "That engraving on the pommel shows this. And that knife? It was stuck in a man with the Epsilon symbol, but without the numbers these ones have," he indicated the men surrounding them, "through his heart. Most of these people are former Spetsnaz, led by a former member of Russia's parliament, where she acted in defense of her father, Mikhail Moiseyev. She has a different surname, Demyen or something like that. They call her the Colonel, though it is unknown if she has any true military experience." He shrugged, shaking his head to get back on track, "To go back to the point, her relationship with her father apparently keeps them at a proper distance in Russia's political climate. With her men being mostly hardened special forces soldiers, they are considered one of the strongest_ Bratva _the Russian Federation has to offer, despite their small size…" He glanced up at Kim, his tone tense, "It is these people who now have my so-…"

"Kim, I just checked in with your backup, they're all on their way!" Wade called out, "But I'm picking up some movement from across the water; there's several zodiac like craft that launched from a Georgian marked container ship!"

"Thanks, Wade!" Kim nodded, then called out, "We have company coming!" A chorus of acknowledgements came back, and she turned her head back to Wade, "You rock as always Wade, keep us poste-…" A slow, loud clap stopped her words cold.

"Impressive, Miss Possible…" a cold, feminine voice called out, one that Ron, Yori, Vincente and Hendrick found familiar, "I had not thought they would call in a hero to help them. Unfortunate for you…"

"Who are you?" Kim snapped, Shay scanning her gaze about the darker sections of the warehouse and seeing at least two dozen people walking towards them seemingly out of nowhere.

"You will shut up, and give up without a fight," the woman's cold voice echoed throughout the warehouse, "Or this will get even uglier. You being part of this has forced our hand earlier than intended, but if you value you and your team's lives, you_ will_ back down!"

The woman came closer to them, a few men coming along closely behind her. After a moment, she was near enough to see some details about her, despite the occasional darkness that enshrouded her from the blast damaged, battery powered emergency light above her. The light, when shining, cast her features into a stark, demonic mien, made all the more sinister by the cruel smirk on her face. She had close cropped black hair, cold brown eyes and surprisingly soft, pleasantly plump facial features. In her hand was a pistol, which she had pointed at the ground, her finger registered near the trigger. She was overweight, but moved as someone that was well muscled and she wore an outfit that bespoke of her past. The uniform jacket's Russian Federation badges had been removed, and replaced with the symbol that a few of the men and women there recognized as that of the Moiseyev_ Bratva_.

"So Moiseyev sent you, the infamous Colonel?" Vincente hissed, "I'm surprised he'd risk his own daughter…" The end of his comment earned a not so stable sounding laugh from the woman.

"Yes, I am the best for this job!" She let her laughter trail off, "As to your precious 'accords', Balisteri, my_ employer_ never signed on to them!" Her face had fallen into a dark scowl when she mentioned her 'employer'. An instant later, an even wider grin slid onto her face, "And you should keep your tongue, boy…" She pulled a pistol from her pocket and waved some of her men into the light, her grin becoming positively sinister, "Or your precious son will_ suffer _before we kill him."

Vincente froze, his face becoming, if possible, more livid. Shay felt more than saw the tensed, ready-to-pounce postures of Team Possible and the ninja, but they restrained themselves when they saw the woman point the pistol at Alfonso, who was held by two burly men in similar uniforms. "Bitch!" Kim yelled, much to the shock of her friends and allies'. The woman, used to such outbursts from potential victims, merely shook her head sadly, almost disappointedly, at the heroine.

"Miss Possible," she said, casually backhanding Alfonso across the face with the pistol's barrel, "If you say another word, my snipers will kill you and your precious love to prove a point." She chuckled as if discussing the weather, "I'm sure that a twelve point five millimeter, armor piercing round will still kill this so-called superhero you call a fiancé?"

Shay glanced at Kim, who was grinding her teeth audibly, then to Ron. The de facto senior Yamanouchi present had taken off his night vision goggles when the emergency lights had come back on, and Shay figured it had something to do with the subtle, slightly flickering blue glow rimming the whites of his eyes._ She doesn't see he has the MMP up… _Shego realized, almost smiling at the prospect of her love's fiancé tearing through these people like he had the WWEE goons.

_If you rely on them, you'll be killed here with them! _the voice in her head yelled suddenly,_ You're going to get them killed anyway, so why not cut your losses and_ survive_, hmmm?_

_Because I love Kim, I'm starting to love him, and_ they _wouldn't do that to_ me_! _Shay hissed in her mind, wishing she could tear the voice out of her head and kill it.

_Oh, poor_ Shego_, so desperate to be rid of her realistic side… _the voice moaned melodramatically,_ So desperate to be that lovesick college girl again! But guess what? I'm here to_ protect _you, girl! _The voice chuckled,_ Besides… As part of your mind, if you get rid of me, __you'll be a useless vegetable…_

Shay almost flinched at that, then came close to flinching again when Yori whispered softly, "Their snipers are down, Pipes-san and X-san are awaiting their reinforcements with Vincente-san's men, and Mechanic-san is ready to blast into the building to try and get Alfonso-san…" She spoke English, apparently Kim, Vincente and Hendrick's benefit. She saw Ron's stance had relaxed some, as was Kim's, though both were still coiled like a spring ready to pounce.

"Good call, Miss Possible." The woman chuckled as she glanced at Alfonso, dropping the pistol back to its rest position next to her thigh, "Do not look so depressed, Alfonso! Your family and Atcherkamp's are about to hand over organized crime to criminals that actually know what they're doing!" She began to laugh in a manner better suited to a socialite showing appropriate humor at a function than a hardened criminal and former soldier.

"You're insane…" Shay narrowed her eyes at the woman, who raised an eyebrow and regarded her as if she were a specimen under a microscope.

"_Y__ou_, my dear, are my... _Our_ ticket to finally getting out of the business ourselves…" the woman said in a disturbingly seductive fashion, seemingly ignoring Shay's barb, "_You _will bring us our retirement, as I know scientists that are absolutely_ fascinated _by you and your abilities!"

"Over my dead body!" Kim and Ron hollered at the same time, shocking Shay to the core by moving between her and their enemy, despite knowing their feelings for her…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Mr. Markus hadn't been surprised that the Rotterdam authorities had been so quick to assist them with a vehicle. What_ had _surprised them was, when Mr. Lipsky had mentioned the Lenco armored truck company, they had informed him that there was one of the company's BearCat armored trucks at the airport. The huge truck, based off of Ford's F550, was armored enough to withstand .50 caliber machine gun rounds, and while heavy, could travel upwards of one hundred and forty kilometers per hour. It also had a top mounted, rotating weapon hatch, in this case, filled with a DeMenz Gruppe Stunball Riot Intervention System turret.

"Dude, Mr. Markus, you're_ seriously _one badass dude!" Mr. Lipsky laughed from the 'shotgun' position as he typed information into the small tablet computer he held, "You were seriously the gunner for one of the CV9030s?"

"Yes, I was!" Mr. Markus smiled as he studied the DeMenz Gruppe Target Detection, Acquisition, and Sighting System. More commonly known as the DG-TaDASS, it was quite similar to the SAAB Universal Tank and Anti-Aircraft Sight he was used to from his time as a gunner in the Swiss Military's APC 2000, the Swiss made infantry fighting vehicle. He continued speaking while he brought up the control system's menu, nodding to himself as he continued in his oddly cadenced English, "I was even recalled to help during the invasion, although I was already on my way to my regimental office when I received the call. We assisted the Swiss Air Force in taking down one Lorwardian walker during the opening forty-five minutes, when the German_ Bundeswehr _requested our assistance."

"Dude, that's seriously awesome!" Mr. Lipsky smiled as he glanced up at the vehicle's turret, then held up a finger as his tablet beeped, "One sec, Mr. Markus Dude!" He glanced over at the driver of the BEAR and said, "Okay, SWAT Dude, I'm gonna have to get to the OBD-II which is under your feet."

"Okay!" the driver, an apparent fan of the Clockwork Knight and his partner, as well as Team Possible, was more than happy to be involved in assisting the big man. And with the man offering to give the vehicle more power, better shifting with the automatic transmission and better economy, who was he to argue? Plus, the driver had said he was personally happy - and duty bound by his membership in the_ Koninklijke Landmacht_, the Royal Netherlands Army - to help heroes in stopping villains that were loose in his country. Mr. Markus honestly didn't blame him; that was why he was in the gunner's turret studying the control system, after all! To him, it was the duty of any member of Switzerland's militia, and considered by himself and many of his countrymen and women, to be_ any _citizen's duty to assist heroes and superheroes in their duties!

"And, um, not to diss your driving, SWAT Dude," Mr. Lipsky said in a surprisingly conciliatory tone as he bent down to plug the harness into the OBD-II port, "but after I finish seriously moddin' your ECU, can I pop some tunes in and take the wheel?" The driver briefly looked over at him with a curious expression on his face, and Mr. Lipsky smiled sheepishly, " I _totally_ learned my lesson with taking the wheel from the green babe! Askin' beforehand and all." With a now confused look, the driver seemed to want to ask further but changed his mind. Mr. Markus thought that was a good idea, considering the situation, but after the events were over, he would like to find out what the big blond meant.

Mr. Lipsky blinked when he saw the look on the driver's face, and laughed at his own commentary, shaking his head briefly. "Sorry dude. Thought you were askin' about me askin' and all. Totally not my mod-us operandy. I'm needing the wheel 'cause I_ seriously _need to put the hurt on the bad dudes harshin' my angel's mellow, but I don't wanna overdo it, y'know? And drivin' helps me calm down, at least a little bit anyway!"

"Help you calm down?" DeMenz asked slowly, but with a slight amusement in his tone. The words were spoken softly, but Mr. Markus, had been paying close attention to everything, even the until-now silent German. "Zhat is not vhat I have heard in zhe past."

"That would be fine," the driver nodded after a moment of puzzling through Mr. Lipsky's sometimes confusing speech, obviously understanding how… Eccentric heroes could sometimes be, "it would probably best if I acted as an on site liaison for you heroes, anyway. I have been informed where Team Possible is, and it is already in the GPS. I shall monitor radio traffic from our observers of the events when you take over…"

"Cool!" Mr. Lipsky chuckled, then looked at the public address system of the vehicle, "Hey, how loud's the PA system?"

"It is a DeMenz Gruppe PA-9001, Mr. Lipsky," the stocky head of the DeMenz Gruppe, GmbH - decked out in a suit very similar to his old supervillain getup, one he had asked his late nephew's replacement to grab for him - chuckled, making sure the straps to his old getaway jetpack were in place. Mr. Markus guessed that the jetpack would allow him to more ably assist the heroes in their work; Mr. DeMenz was, after all, quite the scientist, even if he was a former villain, and looked quite physically capable as well. When he began to inspect his gloves, Mr. Markus felt a wave of curiosity, but the short man was already continuing his commentary, "It vill easily drown out even medium machine gun fire!"

"Seriously?" Mr. Lipsky asked, his eyes widening with nearly maniacal glee when DeMenz nodded, "Oh, this is too sweet!"

The driver looked a little worried when the man started to do an air guitar solo, but the laugh from the Clockwork Knight calmed him down. Mr. Markus chuckled himself, wondering just what Mr. Lipsky was going to play, but hoping it was in line with what his 'look' and antics implied. He was, after all, a fan of mid-eighties heavy metal rock. "Alright, the ECU's updating, it'll take a minute and we'll be ready to switch!"

"While driving?" the driver's concerned face matched his shocked expression, which dropped into one of relief when Mr. Lipsky laughed and shook his head.

"Nah, we have to stop and restart the truck before the ECU and transmission computers to fully take the change, dude!" Mr. Lipsky's grin was that of a man in his element, "But if it didn't have to, why not? I've done it before!"

"You are_ nuts_, Motor Man!" the Clockwork Knight laughed in a positive fashion, earning a punch on the shoulder from his partner. She had just opened her mouth to speak when a beep came from Mr. Lipsky's tablet, and the big man cried out almost gleefully.

"Seriously, we're good to go!" The driver brought the vehicle to a halt and turned off the engine, then unbuckled his belt and stood to allow Mr. Lipsky to take his seat. The driver moved to a seat below and to the turret's left, and both men buckled in at the same time. The blond took time to adjust his seat, before plugging his own portable music player into the PA system's AUX input. He cranked the PA's volume, started the truck and took off, managing to make the tires chirp despite the vehicle being just over ninety seven hundred and fifty kilograms. The big blond man smirked and glanced back at Mr. Markus, "Sorry for cuttin' you off, Mr. Markus Dude, you were saying?"

"I was explaining how our squadron destroyed three more walkers while helping the German_ Bundeswehr_," he smiled as Mr. Lipsky hit play on his music player, and one of Iron Maiden's earlier songs started playing. With an indulgent smile, the Swiss man continued his tale, "We made it to the border just about the time Shego and Ronald Stoppable were leaving for the orbiting Lorwardian battlecruiser. There was a company of Apache gunships playing cat and mouse with a walker; they used trees and land features to avoid being shot down, though the walker seemed to be getting the hang of the game when we arrived. One of their Hellfire missiles had damaged the walker, and our squad commander ordered us to concentrate on that spot. The explosion was quite spectacular, and the Apaches squad leader told us of two walkers holding an important road intersection a few miles from where we were. All in all, we took down three, the apaches took down two, and we helped the Apaches and a few German tanks take out another four."

"The aliens did their attacks right," the Clockwork Knight said with a serious tone, "They concentrated their attack forces on the places most likely to have the tech to stop them, and started with the electrical and communications infrastructure. The US, Germany, France, England, Brazil, India, China and Russia, with a few squads in energy rich places like the Mid-East and Western Africa…"

"It availed them not in the long run."_ Diebfluch _said lowly, remembering how her late husband had literally torn his body apart to help take a heavy version of the walker out in Munich, Germany, "But it's good to know that we're in good hands up there, Mr. Markus."

"Please, we are all in this together?" Mr. Markus said with a questioning tone. His face, however, held no questions and was deadly serious. If his trouble with using English without the cliché Swiss accent still bothered him, he didn't show it, "Let us be on a first name basis. My given name is Joseph."

"Well, Joe," Mr. Lipsky laughed, "I'll probably call ya Mr. Markus Dude a lot, it's just how I roll! But call me Ed, and we're all good, seriously!"

There was a flash on the horizon near their destination, and Joseph felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, "That was not good?"

"Someone detonated a lot of explosives where Team Possible is!" the SWAT man gasped several seconds later, "From what one of our observers said, only a few henchmen got injured, but the heroes are all unharmed."

"Someone tried to take my angel out like that?" Mr. Lip-… Ed growled, his tone quite angry, "Oh, it's_ so _on!" With that, he floored the accelerator, the big truck lumbering forward as they moved down the highway. They were, at the new top speed, less than five minutes away from their destination, and Joseph clenched the controls tighter. "In fact…" Joseph glanced down and his eyes widened slightly as he saw the big man driving with his knees, turning his attention to the music player. He fiddled with it for a moment, before the sounds of a gasoline engine starting up echoed over the PA system.

Joseph was familiar with this song, and a grim smile took his face as Ed's demeanor changed even more. He silently agreed with the man, thinking of how he would react if his own wife had been in danger as his girl apparently was, when the big blond said, "They're seriously,_ seriously _gonna regret messin' with my angel!_ Seriously_!"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"I warned you!" the woman known as the Colonel bellowed, beginning to raise her pistol, "And it will be my pleas-uhaaiiiieee!" her comment was interrupted by a blur of dark grey and pink with small streamers of blue coming off of it. She dropped her pistol and reached up to her face, where that blur had used his claws to tear several deep cuts.

Rufus screamed out a little mole-rat invective, adding insult to injury by pulling his mask down slightly and delivering several bites to her nose at its base. Those teeth, evolved for digging through the hard packed earth of Eastern Africa, easily sliced through the skin and cartilage they encountered. He then planted one foot on her left cheek and his other literally_ in_ her left eye, before shoving himself off of her… Tearing most of her nose off of her face and ruining her eye in the process.

The woman began to blubber and scream orders in enraged Russian, managing to call them out cleanly despite the massive pain she felt. "Cover!" Shay yelled, understanding the woman's orders clearly.

The woman's orders were carried out with professional alacrity. The men to either side of Alfonso dropped him, one pulling a pistol in preparation of killing him while the other unlimbered his slung rifle. Both fell with throwing knives in their kneecaps and shoulders, the blades thrown by the young ninja that had been at Ron's side during their initial attack.

The rest of the men broke into groups of two and three, firing in controlled bursts of suppressive fire in an attempt to get to cover themselves. Kazuo and one of the two ninja that had taken out the final Sonic Destructulator was hit by the fire, but luckily, the bullet resistant padding the Yamanouchi ninja wore under their_ shinobi shōzoku _held firm. They used the impetus from the blows to throw themselves behind the van, where they stayed put, catching their breath from the still painful blows to their bodies.

Kim, Shay, Yori and Hirotaka, followed by Shizuru and Ken, took to the second story. The ninja used their skills to manage the feat, Ron and Shay literally powered themselves up to grab the railing to pull themselves over, while Kim used her wrist Kimmunicator's grapnel. "You and Yori take the left, KP," Ron called out as he dashed along the second of the two 'crossbars' of the double-'H' that was the second floor, "Shay, Hiro and I'll take the right!"

"Got it, Ron!" Kim agreed, dashing forward as Shay blasted a covering fire of plasma for herself, Ron and Hiro, "We've got to stop this before it gets worse!" Kim called, worry clouding her voice as gunfire echoed from outside as well.

"No shit, Princess!" Shay snipped back, just as they heard a close explosion and the distinctive sound of a Wade sourced rocket pack blasting through underneath them, "Hope she manages to get Al without getting herself or him killed!"

"No shit, Sheegs!" Ron said, managing a dark sounding chuckle as he caught sight of the first group trying to attain the second level, coming up from their right. He powered ahead, managing to tap into and use a slight boost from the MMP - which, thanks to being out of his berserker state, was more controlled, and far from the 'Super Ape' he'd been at the end of the Lorwardian invasion and earlier that night - to take the first soldier by surprise. Shay, following behind, took care of the second with a primarily concussive blast of plasma, the glowing green blob striking the man's bullet proof vest square in the trauma plate. The force of the blast knocked him unconscious, and into one of his two remaining friends.

"You two cover us from up here!" Ron ordered to Shizuru and Ken. He turned back to the former thief, who had her attention on the stairwell. The former thief glanced at Ron, smirking and said, "Express elevator?" The blond looked up, smiling as he noticed the flaring plasma, then back down to the semi-open stairwell below. He nodded, and the super powered woman jumped over the railing with a loud, angry yell…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Yori was right behind Kim as the two teens barreled towards the left hand stairwells, the only access points built into the building that could reach the second floor. Both were filled with righteous indignation at the despicable actions of the men fighting below them. There sounds of intense combat outside and bullets, fired from the outside at two thirds of the Upperclassmen, a few ninja and several experienced mafia enforcers, tore through the wall near them. The bullets, somehow, managed to miss the ladies by scant centimeters on a few occasions._ At least none of it was from intentional fire! _a thankful Yori noted to herself.

Another thing she noted was that Kim seemed to be content to run through the fire, despite the dire situation. The red-head's eyes, much like the ninja's own, were focused on the first men to appear below them on the stairwell, which they had dived into, using their grapnels like descender rigs. Back on the ground floor, they both saw that five of the groups had come together under cover, a total of sixteen men whose attention was on the far end of the warehouse. They were separated into three groups in general, the left hand group had seven men, the center group was three men trying to set up what looked to be a mad scientist's weapon. While troubling, Yori found the six in the right hand group most troubling, as they were in the process of setting up to ambush anyone that managed to come down the first floor's length. "Kim-chan!" Yori called out, "We should take the ones to the righ-…"

She stopped speaking with a sigh when Kim flew off ahead of her, seeming to ignore her comment. The red-head jumped up, her forward momentum sending her into a flying somersault over a burst of automatic weapons fire. After the apex of her somersault, she dove feet first into what Yori presumed was the command group… All of which were heavily armed.

Yori had a few instants to stare in awe as the men dropped or swayed out of the heroine's way, three moving in an almost balletic fashion as they dropped to a knee and tracked her, one with an AK-74, two with Makarov pistols. They moved at a speed that would put most of even Yamanouchi's advanced students to shame, their lines of fire avoiding their comrades as they tracked the red-head, intent on taking her life… And she still managed to outmaneuver them, her acrobatic cheerleading moves melding with the hectic, grabbing blows of Northern Mantis and the vicious, rapid hand strikes of Southern Crane…

Then she was among her group, and she was quite glad in that moment that her_ tessen _had survived the mines intact enough for use in combat. She dove into the group to the right, both to take the heat off of their allies and to give Kim a chance to finish her group, presuming they could converge on the middle group. With her_ tessen _flashing, she deflected two gunshots at her torso, while her feet, elbows, shoulders, even her head struck out against her enemies.

She easily took down two men with a sidekick to knee strike combo to her right and a sweeping double strike to nerve clusters to the man to her left with a folded_ tessen_. She broke the right-hand man's femur, knocking him out with the knee to his face; the other man folded, his arms useless and his breathing labored, but in no real danger of death.

She quickly moved on to the next man, who almost had her in his sights. Yori moved her other_ tessen_, still open, in a preemptive block of his shot, the fan angled away from her. The man tried a double tap that was almost as fast as a submachine gun, but the warfan held against the fire. She slipped under and inside his arms, even as he let go of his pistol with its supporting hand and began to fall back. He was quick, smooth, but she was quicker and smoother, her maneuver unexpected. She drove herself upwards, the point of her forehead striking his nose, knocking him for a loop and breaking the cartilaginous feature.

She tossed her closed_ tessen _upwards, reaching into her_ shinobi shōzoku _to pull out a pair of throwing knives, using his still falling form as a step. She leapt upwards, spinning and twisting while letting fly with the blades. They flashed in the dim emergency lights of the warehouse, one striking a man in the shoulder, the other sticking into the barrel of an AK-74 just before the wielder could fire it. The weapon's first round almost dislodged the blade, but it stayed fast, the followup round coming too quickly for the man to let off the trigger. The rifle backfired, but fortunately for the man, its gas tube ruptured near the tube's interface with the weapon's barrel.

She reached up and grabbed her_ tessen _from midair, bringing them around with the other just as the last two men rolled out of her range and came up facing her, weapons ready. She lashed out with her left hand's warfan, deflecting the man's AK-74 away from her. She then swept her right foot in an inward crescent kick at the other man's head, just missing him, but sending his shots wide. She used the instant of freedom to grab the first man's assault rifle by the magazine, using it to pull him into a nearly vertically driven front kick.

The man went down hard, his jaw dislocated and broken. Yori spun around as both the man whose shot she'd sent wide and the man she'd jabbed in the throat with her_ tessen _came at her. She saw that the still armed man was planning to use his weapon's butt as a bludgeon, while the other was in what some would consider the most basic of Systema stances.

The teen took both men by surprise by attacking the unarmed one, slipping under the armed man's attack to drive stiff fingers into the soft spot between his first rib and clavicle. She noticed movement as the man she'd wounded with a knife to the shoulder had come back to a kneeling position, a pistol in his hands and aiming at her. She continued her movement after the jab, sweeping the now-stunned man, her arm moving along to his elbow to lock his arm behind his head. She then kicked his knee from behind, driving him to the floor and into his pistol wielding comrade, knocking both of them into unconsciousness as their heads collided.

She turned and instinctively dodged to her left, only to be bowled over by the man who had been trying to deliver a butt stroke to her head with his rifle. The man bore her down to the ground, but she managed to get her feet between them, shoving with all of her might. The man, obviously experienced at hand-to-hand, managed to tuck into the throw, coming up on one knee and spinning smoothly around with his firearm raised towards the young ninja.

Yori felt a brief surge of worry as she brought her warfans up, covering her body and head as best she could as he fired. Several of the bullets struck her_ tessen _and were deflected, while the rest missed her by scant centimeters, striking the boxes behind her with hollow sounding impacts. The bolt of his rifle slammed forward one final time, the subtle click of the bolt striking against an empty chamber telling both combatants that the magazine was empty._ At least he shall not be able to use it against me as a firearm!_

The thought could have been considered to have come too soon as the man reached to his sidearm. However, Yori had already begun to surge forward as he did so. He managed to clear the pistol from its holster, but Yori brought her left_ tessen _around in a circular manner, striking the barrel and shoving the weapon away from his grip's strength, the blow strong enough to knock the weapon from his hand. It clattered to the floor unceremoniously and slid underneath a box's floor pallet. Undaunted, the man moved about smoothly, his left arm catching the ninja just behind the right shoulder and shoving her forward as he skipped back a half step.

Yori flowed with the movement, swinging her left hand warfan around towards him, only to meet the resistance of the man's own bladed weapon. He had the knife settled along his right forearm in a reverse grip, allowing the force of her blow to move his arm in a clockwise arc relative to Yori, deflecting the fan's deadly edge away from him. As soon as the threat of the first fan was over, he flicked his wrist, bringing the blade around to a saber grip before skipping forward. He brought his left hand up and around to his left while simultaneously twisting his right hand's grip, drawing his blade across his body and towards Yori's now open left armpit.

His blade encountered the wide swath of Yori's right hand warfan, the weapon coming up just in time to block the blow directed at her brachial artery. She allowed herself to fall backwards halfway to the floor, before twisting and rolling over her right shoulder, collapsing her right hand_ tessen _with a loud, clicking snap. She came up and spun around, bringing her left hand around in a sweeping move with the still open tessen. This brought the metal fan blades into contact with the man's knife blade, driving it to the side and downwards.

She brought her other, closed warfan forward in a jab towards the man's breadbasket. The man, having expected a throat strike, still managed to bring down a hand to block most of the striking fan's force. Instead of knocking the wind out of him and stunning his diaphragm into spasm, her strike merely made him grunt involuntarily. He brought his blocking hand back up and managed to get slight purchase on her wrist, but Yori twisted her wrist against that hand's thumb before he could get a full grasp. She immediately brought a foot up to kick the same spot she'd just stuck with her warfan, incidentally pushing her out of the path his jabbing knife.

The man was incredibly fast, despite being as big as Hirotaka, and he managed to turn the stabbing motion into slice down and across their bodies. Yori twisted and jutted her hips backwards, the knife passing over the bullet- and stab-resistant natural and synthetic fiber of her suit. Her eyes widened as his incredibly sharp blade managed to cut a ten centimeter long slice through her uniform, missing the skin of her hip by just over a millimeter._ He is _incredibly_ good with his blade, _she observed in a mix of concern and appreciation for his skill,_ I must end this soon!_

She allowed her right hand to swing that hand's_ tessen _around the back of her hand with incredible speed, catching it such that it opened as if spring driven towards the fingers holding the knife. The move almost succeeded, but the man shoved his hand forward into the open space between her body and left arm. The move gave her his arm, but allowed the frame of the warfan to strike his firm forearm muscles, which had next to no effect on his grip. Yori felt the man attempting to maneuver his arm so he could bring the blade's tip into her back.

To counter this, she spun her left arm down towards her body, intending the open fan to slide across the tendons on the inside of his wrist. The incredibly sharp edges of her_ tessen _easily sliced through to the bone, but a last instant twist of his wrist saved the inside of his wrist. Although the wound bled, it was not the spurting of blood that would indicate she had hit either the arteries on the underside of his wrist or the tendons. Nonetheless, dropped the blade as burning pain shot from his wrist to his fingertips, seeming to bounce back up to his shoulder. He jumped back, barely removing his arm from her reach as she attempted to grasp his wrist.

The man quickly tumbled backwards, twisting and rolling much like a bear would. His kicking feet kept Yori from a direct attack, giving him a few precious seconds to unfold the cuff of his glove. He came to a standing position as he was tightening the wrist strap, turning the glove into a makeshift, but quite effective, tourniquet for the slash Yori had delivered. He brought his hands up just in time to block two strikes Yori had thrown with her now folded warfans.

He also managed to deflect the knee she'd driven towards his groin, twisting his body to her right, his left arm managing to snag enough of her right to throw her. He pulled her arm out and down while dropping his hips and knees into a slight crouch, before shoving himself backwards and pulling on her arm. The move caused her right hand_ tessen _to fly from her grasp. To keep him from controlling her, she twisted that arm against his thumb. Feeling herself loosed from his grasp, she turned the throw into a forward flip on the floor, but not before a kick managed to connect to her left forearm, dislodging her other warfan. Coming up with a leg twisting kip up before he could capitalize on her being grounded, she took a low, stable stance, staring the man in the eye across the three meters of space between them.

Seeing the man was still glancing at his wrist, she risked a glance down the length of the warehouse. She felt a brief flood of despair upon seeing that some of their enemy had managed to slip by X, Pipes and Vincente's men to block in those that had been left back near the Yamanouchi van._ I need to end this! _She growled in frustration with that thought, deciding to take a page out of both Kim and Ron's play books. With a cry, she sprang forward, dropping as if going in for a sweep. When the man committed to the block by hopping into a tight, crouching jump, she tilted forward into a handstand, turning the move into a handspring that drove her feet into his gut. With a loud whoosh of air, the man's wind was knocked out of him, the force of Yori's unexpected move knocking him flat onto his back.

As Yori came down from the move, she skittered forward on her hands and feet, using a mix of Tai Sheng Pek Kwar and Drunken Monkey to get close to the man as quickly as she could. She rolled and brought her heel around towards his head, barely missing as he rolled out of her way. She continued the roll to her feet, then fell backwards, seemingly losing her balance. She drove an elbow towards the man's body, connecting and breaking one of his ribs despite his attempts to avoid her. With a loud groan, his face quickly paling from the pain, the man somehow managed to get to his feet, barely dodging the spinning dervish that the ninja had become as she drove first a knee then a kick towards his head.

The man was quick to tumble towards one of his comrade's discarded weapons. He rolled over his left shoulder, grasping the grip of the weapon with his injured right hand - gritting his teeth through the pain he obviously felt - and the forestock. He came up in a kneeling firing position, smoothly rotating around on his right knee and bringing the weapon to bear on Yori despite his broken rib. She dove left without a thought, managing somehow to avoid his fire, She was just preparing to dive to her right, which would lead her to the relative safety of a crate, when a body flew through the air and landed on the man.

The unconscious form of a man wearing lieutenant's markings shoved the man to the ground, the head of the man aiming at Yori slamming with knockout force against the head of one of his comrades. Yori blinked and looked to her left, where a grinning Kim Possible stood above the forms of the two men that had been putting the mad scientist device together. Atop what was left of the device, a pleased looking Rufus stood, having obviously taken apart the device while Kim dealt with the other men. "Thanks for keeping those guys off my back, Yori!"

"You…" Yori gasped as she glanced behind Kim. She recognized some of the men, having read one of Shizuru-san's after-action reports. She blinked twice more and shook her head, glancing back with mild amazement at Kim, blurting, "I knew you were good, Kim-chan, but those men-…"

"Eh, no big," Kim surveyed the opposite corner from them, where Ron and Shay were making their way over, then back the other way, where Mechanic had joined with X, Pipes and Vincente's men from the outside to assist those inside, "They were tougher than most henchmen I've dealt with, but compared to Ron, Shego or you?" She shrugged and walked over to a frustrated looking Shego.

_No big? _Yori protested in her mind, wanting to scream the words at the confident red-head before her. "But these men were trained as Spetsnaz, Russian Special Forces!"

Kim blinked in surprise, then screwed her face up in confusion, glancing behind her, "They must have been out of practice…" She turned back and was prepared to shrug once more when she caught the fulminating glare Yori was giving her.

"Kim-chan…" Yori started in an angry whisper, before half growling, "Kim-chan… We will have to discuss your American-style humor later. I am not finding it particularly amusing at the moment!"

"Yori?" Kim flinched at the ninja's tone, and was about to prod further when Shay's urgent voice interrupted her.

"That ugly bitch in charge of these assholes had a bolthole under some of the crates Mechanic was using to hide Alfonso!" She nodded her head behind Ron and herself, adding, "They popped up literally right from underneath them and snagged him while trying to overwhelm her!"

"And they have him underground?" Kim asked, earning a frustrated nod from Shego.

"And a blast door it'd take me a few minutes to burn through." She spat the words as if they were a curse, before activating her version of the wrist Kimmunicator, "Wade, can you scan the underground?"

"He is already using our scanners to do so, Miss Shego!" Pipes said as most of Yamanouchi ninja and Vincente's men came up to them. Shego nodded and brought up a holographic display of what Wade had scanned, pursing her lips.

_The material must be giving his scanners trouble… _Yori concluded as she saw that the scans only showed the exteriors, but nothing of the interior. There were only two entrances here at the warehouse, one where the Russians had bolted, and another they were almost literally standing on.

"It's a hidden set of rooms," Wade stated with the droll tone of someone stating the blatantly obvious, before becoming more concerned, "But all of them are covered by the same material… Hold on…" Wade typed a few commands in, then his eyes widened, "I'm detecting a power surge, a big one!"

Shego, who was watching Wade's scan on her own wrist device, cursed, "That looks a lot like the power and gravity readings from one of Drew's bigger hovercraft!"

"I think that's exactly what they are, and I'm getting some readings like Kim's battlesuit shield from down ther-…" Wade started, when there were several subdued pops. The floor less than a half meter behind Shego dropped into the floor underneath, the slab of concrete falling downwards almost ten meters before shattering over… Something.

"Oh, no…" Yori whispered as she slid her slimline night vision goggles back in place, edging so she could just see down into the blackness below them, "Back away from the hole, we have a_ serious _problem!"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay glanced over at Yori as she unleashed what the former thief could only consider an 'Eddyism'. She snickered softly under her breath, before following the ninja's advice, backing up with everyone else. "What's up, Cherry Blossom?"

"A pair of JSDF Type 106 MoSCASP armor suits and several men on top of a_ floating _T-90 tank!" Yori said breathlessly as the low hum of heavily stressed hover tech reached their ears.

"Oh, shit…" Shay breathed, worry clouding her eyes as she glanced over at Kim and Ron. She looked over at Vincente her tone urgent, "Cover us, Vincente! We'll go after Alfonso as soon as we deal with this!"

"Hiro," Ron said in Japanese, "Get everyone in cover, just in case…"

"Hai…" Hirotaka said in a tone that screamed he was uncomfortable with Ron's choice, "Yori-chan, stay with them."

"Hai!" Yori agreed before Ron could protest, taking up her_ tessen _and standing next to Shay, even as Vincente snapped orders in Italian.

Vincinte and Hendrick both turned back as they took cover with Vincente's men, calling out as one, "We have your backs!"

"X, you three get to cover, too!" Kim said, raising a hand before they could protest, "All of you guys are gonna be our trump cards!"

"Fine, K!" Mechanic snapped angrily, "But don't you_ dare _get your ass killed, hear me?"

"No big!" Kim addressed her once high school rival, now third best female friend in the world, winking at her.

"Yes, big!" Mechanic retorted as she was literally dragged into cover by her husband, "I'm serious, Possible! You 'n' Stoppable are among the few people I call friends!"

"Hush, Mechanic…" X said soothingly, taking a position that would allow him to observe the scene essentially undetected.

"It just started to glow!" Yori added tensely, "It is as if it has a science fiction shield, and it's moving upwards!" The announcement made the small hairs on the back of the Shay's neck stand on edge.

"That's the battlesuit energy readings Wade got!" Kim snapped in anger, "How did they get that?"

"It was something the Russians were working on for the T-90 a few years ago, Kim. I, uh, _might_ have borrowed some of the schematics for your suit..." Wade said with a worried tone, "You guys need to get out of there; it could even stand up to Shego at nearly full burn!"

"Not gonna happen, Nerdlinger!" Shay growled as the bluish glow from the shield around the tank the rough inner edges where the concrete floor had fallen through, "They still have Alfonso!"

"And we're getting him back!" Kim and Ron added at the same time, not bothering with the jinx.

_You can save them, y'know… _the all too familiar voice whispered in Shay's head,_ Convince them to leave, to keep them safe…_

_They wouldn't leave! _Shay snapped back at the voice,_ Alfonso's in danger and they've got my back!_

_But… _the voice's tone was conciliatory and completely sincere,_ If you were to do something… Give Kim a minor wound, something she could forgive you for… _The voice changed its tone, sounding more strident,_ Think on it, before you lose them!_

Shay would have snapped at the voice again, but the forms of the two 106s standing by the tank's turret came into view, telling everyone present that the situation was all but untenable. Then the tank's turret and several men standing atop the tank's deck appeared. The men jumped off onto the concrete behind the tank, moving out to flank the war machine to the rear while keeping their weapons at ease, but ready to use, while the turret swung around towards them. The tank was almost normal looking, if you discounted the odd looking pods set just behind and in front of the centerline of the tank's length. They had obviously not had time to fully integrate the anti-gravity pod units to the tank, as they were sitting in place where two sections of the treads armor skirts should have been.

The pods had armor that was angled to deflect fire like anything on most modern main battle tanks, but Shay could see the mounting points, smirking as she realized that they were not made of the same metal as the armor was._ If I can get close enough… _she thought, when Damyan herself popped her head and shoulders up from the turret's hatch. She focused on the central group of Kim, Ron, Shay and Yori, scowling dangerously at them. She had what appeared to be a hastily applied field bandage over her eye and nose, several steri-strips holding the deeper cuts on her face closed and several splotches of what seemed to be antiseptic solution over the smaller cuts.

"I will enjoy killing all of you…" she hissed at them, finally smiling a cold, nasty looking smile, "I have Alfonso in the tank with me, and I think I shall take two of you as hostages… Most of my men are already gone, but due to your interference, we must have insurance to get our most prized possession out of the country!" She glanced at Shay, then Kim, snickering as both women stiffened, "I'm sure you understand, yes? Miss Possible? Shego? Step forward."

"Go to Hell!" Shay and Ron snapped at the same time, Ron's eyes beginning to glow a brilliant blue and the sounds of monkeys working themselves into a frenzy becoming audible to the security consultant. "Calm down, Ron!" she hissed, glancing to her right and lighting up, earning a few weapons almost being raised at her and a somewhat unhinged laugh from the wounded woman.

The Russian woman laughed for several long seconds, before stopping and roaring at the top of her lungs, "That was not a request, and if Stoppable continues his superheroics, I shall kill you all anyway!" She slammed her hands on the armored top of the tank, pointing forward with a finger, "Nicolai, cover them, Sergey, move forward and take the two of them!" She glared back at the group, "And if either of you resist, we shall begin killing your comrades!" Half of the troops brought their weapons to bear, the others giving space as the Type-106 on the front of the tank moved off of the vehicle. The tank swayed slightly as the anti-gravity pods adjusted their gravitics to compensate for the weight shift, but the Type-106 still on the tank kept them covered, as did the soldiers.

Shay was ready with her plasma, flaring it brighter. She knew that if the main cannon of that tank went off, anyone within several meters would be hurt, if not killed, just from the blast alone. If they were using anti-personnel ammunition, all bets would be off…

Her musing was cut off when Yori suddenly let out a subtle giggle. "What the hell's so funny, Ninja Girl?" she hissed as she glanced at the ninja, raising an incredulous eyebrow.

"Do you not hear that?" Shay could, indeed hear something… Something that sounded like music. She blinked, her eyes still filled with questions. Yori continued, a feral smile coming to her face, her dark eyes gleaming in an almost disturbingly hungry fashion, singing to something that Shay could barely make out, despite her experience as a thief. Yori giggled again, and began to half chant, half sing under her voice, her head swaying subtly from side to side with each word, "Clouds of smoke, tires screaming, fire in my hair!"

"What is that racket?" Damyan suddenly asked, her and a few of the troops behind the tank turning in place to look towards the overhead door behind her, "Do they think we are simple minded as to-…"

That's when everyone heard the sound of heavy duty tires, belonging to a heavy vehicle, protesting sudden maneuvers and the sound of a big diesel engine pushed to nearly its limits. Over even the noise of the engine and the loud screeching of the tires, they heard the sound of a loud heavy metal beat. They also heard two voices, one that of an experienced musician, the other belonging to someone that five of those gathered in front of the tank recognized as belonging to Motor Ed.

"My man finally showed up to help out!" Yori said with a tone that Shay could only call wanton, then called out in Japanese, "Prepare to scatter!"

"Get ready to bolt, guys!" Shay yelled, as a few of the troops dropped to kneeling positions, ready to open fire if they so much as moved. Everyone facing the overhead door saw the high intensity lights of a large vehicle slew wildly towards the warehouse.

The woman atop the tank stiffened in shock as she saw what was coming through one of the overhead door's windows. "Turn around, take that vehicle out!" Damyan roared, the turret beginning to turn quickly, as did the Type-106s.

But it was too late, and any further orders were cut off by her as the combined voices of Edward 'Motor Ed' Lipsky and Eric Adams of the band Manowar. "Spirit," spilled from the big truck's PA system as the huge armored truck burst through the door at nearly one hundred and sixty six kilometers per hour, "Of the wheel!" The men that had been covering Team Possible and Yori scattered to avoid being hit with flying debris, even the Type-106 that had grounded itself moved as if it needed protection.

The truck slammed into the tank, the size and relatively slow speed allowing it to pass through the shield - which had been designed to stop much smaller, far faster moving objects - unmolested. Damyan was just shutting the hatch of the tank when the Lenco BearCat slammed its reinforced battering ram bumper into both of the anti-gravity pods. While the anti-gravity pod's armor and anchor points held firm and the bumper was merely bent a little, the strike upset the delicate balance of the tank's hovering system.

The truck stopped almost literally in place, miraculously not going over the edge of the hole the tank had floated from. Shay saw movement in the truck as soon as it stopped, when movement from the top drew her attention there. A man, incongruously dressed in a suit and tie while wearing a SWAT style helmet, popped out of the turret on top of the truck. The turret was almost military in appearance, but Shay knew that the gun wasn't military, as the ends of DeMenz heavy stunball launchers began to glow as he swiveled the turret to his left. "You shall give up or I shall open fire!" the man called out in the odd cadence teh former thief had come to identify with the Swiss, being answered by a snap shot that bounced off of the armored protection near the firearm's mounts. He immediately opened fire, taking out half of the men on his left side with his first volley, leaving them yelling in pain and writhing as the stunballs unloaded one hundred and fifty thousand volts into their bodies.

The tank, meanwhile, had been shoved towards the dodging Team Possible, Shay and Yori, tilting dangerously clockwise around its axis. The Type-106's pilot, not having expected the sudden movement, had managed to land right next to the BearCat's left front fender, which had drawn the gunner's attention. He opened up on the mech, amping the power of the stunballs to max, which sent the machine into a nearly epileptic level of seizing, before it toppled over, useless.

Not far past the hole in the floor, the tank tried to right itself, but like a boat piloted by a relative novice in rough seas, the movement was overcorrected for, passing perpendicular to the floor as it swung back the other way. With a rending, grinding crash, the tank flipped over, the turret somehow managing to stay in place as it came down on its top. Had the turret flown loose, it would have killed everyone within; as it was, whoever was inside the turret proper was likely suffering from severe injuries.

The sight of the tank where his son was being held captive flipping was almost too much for Vincente. He shot up and made his way over towards the tank, heedless of the gunfire coming from the right hand group as they attempted to hit the fast moving group of heroes going after them. "Alfonso!" the Italian screamed, only to be tackled down by one of his men, who covered him as the overloaded anti-gravity pod's charging capacitors blew.

Luckily, the armor of the pods kept the shrapnel in place, but Vincente nonetheless looked at Leonardo Esposito, his oldest working lieutenant, with a thankful smile. "Be more careful, Vincente!" the man laughed, still thoroughly enjoying the tense situation as he always did.

"It is my son!" Vincente snapped in reply, still managing to smirk, "You'd do the same for little Leonardo Junior, you old bastard!"

Across the way, the Russians who had fired upon Team Possible, Shay and Yori quickly learned the mistake of that move. Not only were several ninja converging on their location, but the some of Vincente's men giving the three heroes and ninja covering fire. This the men could likely have handled, but the sight of Ron's eyes trailing a smoky blue mist of energy, Shay's hands enshourded in flames and her eyes holding a hint of the very same green fire was unnerving them. They were, after all, soldiers, not superheroes!

As bad as all of it was, they also had to contend with a known heroine of Kim Possible's renown and one of the ninja's apparent leaders, who had taking out the three stragglers that had avoided the stunball barrage from the BearCat's turret as if they were basic army recruits. They were close to routing, but they were denied even that as they turned to bolt.

The men let out a collective groan as a woman in red armor dropped down in front of them, a thin grapnel line playing out behind her. The armor had been updated slightly since three of the four had last seen it, with black piping now along the outer arm and leg seams. Her helmet that had once covered her entire head now allowed her full lips and chin to be desplayed clearly, accented by narrow blue stripes that flowed from her helmet down along her body, emphasizing her generous, muscular curves. That was all the men needed to realize that discretion would be the better part of valor.

The men threw down their weapons and held their hands up in surrender; they were, after all, facing heroes, who had rules… And they had long memories and excellent lawyers.

"I was going to ask if you needed a hand," the red armored woman said in a slight German accent, her voice quite familiar, "But I guess these ones aren't stupid!"

"McBoobs!" Shay said with an evil chuckle, as several ninja converged on their location, Ron ordering them to tie the men up. Shay laughed at the blush she'd drawn from the older woman, then turned back to the scene behind them.

The Upperclassmen, the Clockwork Knight and a man whom could only be Hanz DeMenz were dashing and flying respectively about the other Type-106. DeMenz had used the metal destabilizing gauntlets he'd once used to break into high tech facilities to destroy the weapons the mech had used, while Clockwork and the Upperclassmen were performing a very Ron quality bit of distraction. Shay, wanting to end the entire fight, flared her plasma and fired a blast at the power cables one of DeMenz's actions had unveiled. The ball of superheated plasma struck true, and the machine shuddered to a halt a few seconds later.

"Booyah!" Ron crowed, relaxing now that the danger was essentially past.

Shay, wanting to do a little more damage, dashed over to the tank, her plasma still going as she slid under it where the driver's hatch was. She carefully began to cut into the metal, hoping that Alfonso was alright and that everyone else inside was unconscious or otherwise incapacitated…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Ron sighed as he closed the door to Shay's…_ Their _house… It was almost three and a half hours after finishing things up down in Schiedam. Thankfully, Alfonso had only been a bit bruised and had managed to break free of his zip tie bindings during the tank's fortunate tumble. He had managed to knock out the driver and gunner, the woman who had orchestrated the double cross of the WWEE having been knocked out when the tank had overturned.

They'd had to wait for almost an hour and a half as questions were asked, statements taken, all the rigamarole attendant with such an out of control situation. They'd managed to capture roughly half of the men that Damyan had brought, as well as several pieces of mad and super science equipment… That was the most troubling, to Ron, but the Dutch authorities had assured them that they had Global Justice already working on containment procedures for the devices. As well, the agency was helping them with looking for the Russians that_ had _escaped.

Near the end of the mess, Ron had been approached by both Yori and Hirotaka, who had wondered if they could accompany them back to Amsterdam… Something that he and Shay had readily agreed to, not realizing the can of worms they had apparently opened up. Yori had told Ed she'd catch up with him in Munich, the big mechanical genius knowing immediately that something was off. He'd tried to calm her, but, unfortunately, anything he said seemed to flow off of Yori like water off of a duck's back. He'd asked Ron what was wrong, but Ron had been as clueless as everyone else; even Hirotaka was uncertain what had Yori steamed.

As such, despite the fact that Ron knew he should feel the relaxed, post-mission buzz of waning adrenaline - not to mention the tiring effects of sustained use of the MMP - the tightness in the air had kept the MMP flowing at a low level. Especially since, soon after Yori and Hirotaka's request to visit with them, Kim had made a couple of her oh-so-typical remarks. Remarks that Ron barely acknowledged as anything other than the norm… Yet they seemed to have stirred up an undeniable tension, one which had pervaded the mostly silent trip back to Amsterdam.

His posture and the look on his face troubled as he gazed between Kim, Shay and their visitors, Hirotaka and Yori. Hirotaka and Shay both wore similarly troubled expressions. Even Rufus, who was dead asleep in Kim's artist bag, seemed tense when the red-head pulled him out to set him on the breakfast bar between the kitchen and the living room. And when it came to Kim, she wore a bemused expression, one that was becoming tenser and coloring with growing frustration and annoyance at the beautiful ninja with every passing moment. Said ninja was beyond tense, her posture that of a woman controlling her rage with difficulty, her hands held as if claws. Frankly, she acted much like she had when they'd returned to Yamanouchi after Fukushima had betrayed them… And all of it seemed directed at Kim!

"Man, this tanks!" Ron whispered, drawing a raised eyebrow from Shay and a cock of the head from Rufus.

"Be okay?" Rufus asked, reaching out to pat his person's hand.

"Yeah, I hope so, it's just…" He paused with a nervous chuckle, then shrugged, "Yori's tweaked at KP, and KP's getting' tweaked right back." He shrugged, "I guess girls will always confuse me…"

"You 'n' me both, Sport." Shay whispered back in a deadpan tone.

"Oh, er…" Ron started, only to relax when the pale woman winked at him, "Awww, c'mon, Sheegs, don't do that to me right now!"

Shay chuckled, despite the tension, and reached over to slug him lightly on the shoulder, "Couldn't resist, Ronnie…" She turned towards the kitchen, needing a bit of a refuel after the action of the day and asked in a louder tone, "Y'want anything?"

"Totally!" he cried, both heeding the loud growling his stomach was now producing. He knew he wanted to provide himself with a distraction from the obvious tension between his fiancee and his ninja friend, and felt Shay had similar reasons. Ron got up and began going toward the kitchen, "If you want, I could whip up some Stoppable food of awesome! Not the same as an after-mission naco, but considering the sacrilegious lack of Bueno Nachos in the area…" He shrugged as he turned back, taking the rest of them in with what he hoped was a winning grin.

Kim sighed, seeming to agree with Ron's stomach, and looked between him and Shay, "I don't care which of you cooks as long as someone does; I could_ so _use some food right now!"

"After a 'mission' that was so easy, Possible-_sama_?" Yori asked in a tone so mockingly sweet that it bordered on derisive; a tone that set off alarm bells in Ron's mind, having heard a similar tone for years from Bonnie when she was about to go off on Kim about something. "Why would you be famished if it was, how do you say, 'No big!'?" The ninja's face was smiling when Ron looked, but her eyes were flashing with rage.

Ron glanced at Kim and saw she'd made the same mental connection to Yori's comment as he had, and opened his mouth to speak before Mount Possible could explode. He was beaten by a worried Hirotaka, who was trying to stop the very same potential crisis. "Yori-cha-…"

"Alright," Kim snapped hotly, interrupting Hirotaka as she rounded on Yori. Raising a finger raised towards the Japanese teen's face, she growled out, "What in the hell is your goddamned damage, Yori? Huh?"

"KP!" Ron and Shay snapped at the same time, being ignored much as Hirotaka had been. Ron moved towards Yori at the same time Shay moved towards Kim, but both of them were beaten to keeping the two separated as Yori closed the distance between the two of them._ At least KP dropped her finger before Yori got there! _Ron thought as Kim did just that, placing closed fists akimbo and leaning forwards slightly.

"My 'damage', as you say, is your attitude!" Yori snapped back, moving fully into Kim's space so that their noses were barely two centimeters apart, "I understand humility in victory, I even understand having the ability to fight powerful opponents with relative ease!" She dropped her voice to the point it was barely above a whisper, which made her rage seem all the more potent, "But what I thought was your_ humility _is more like_ arrogance_! It is far more frustrating than I remember it to be!"

"Both of you, cal-…" Shay started, her ire beginning to rise at both her guest for her attitude, and Kim for responding to it. Unfortunately, Shay, who had seen Kim and Ron in minor tiffs, was being reintroduced to Kim Possible's temper… Something the pale woman hadn't seen in full force since the night of the Li'l Diablos, and something she'd obviously dismissed as a fluke… The very same temper that Ron was quite familiar with, and hadn't seen flaring at this level since their last argument about the red-head's father before their vacation.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kim all but yelled back, throwing her hands out to her sides and drawing her head back and cocking it to her right a bit. "Are you talking about those so-called Spetsnaz back at the warehouse?

"They_ were_ Spets-…" Hirotaka and Shay began together, but once again the angry ladies ignored both of them.

"What?" Yori demanded, her face screwing up in confusion, "What do you mean, 'so called'?"

"Well," Kim said in a low, almost insultingly considering tone, "If they were the real deal, I think_ I_ should've had a bit more trouble with them, Yori!" Yori's face twisted more in confusion, drawing a harsh bark of laughter from Kim, "I'm not some warrior superhero, Yori! I've said it I don't know_ how _many times, I'm_ just _a_ regular girl_! I may have some martial arts chops, but if they were_ real _Spetsnaz, how the_ hell _could I have fought 'em, huh?"

"We've talked about this, Princess!" Shay finally snapped, her ire directing itself more towards Kim than Yori, "You may have all the worries of a regular girl, but you're_ not _so_ basic _or_ average_, dammit!"

"Excuse me, Shay?" Kim glared at her lover, "How many people did I point out that do things_ better _than I do? Do I_ need _to go over that list again?"

"Don't go there, Princess…" Shay started, her eyes flashing in a distinctly angry fashion.

_Oh, shit, not this, not_ now_! _Ron begged, feeling the familiar pressure of a tension headache as Kim seemed to backslide to her attitude of the last few months before his eyes. Kim's insistence she wasn't special had been getting to Ron the last few months, especially the last few_ days_, but to see it so easily getting to Yori? That was surprising… And now Shay was coming down on Yori's side, which he_ knew _would lead to five hundred miles of bad road!

Even with that worry, though, Ron couldn't help but realize something about Yori._ Being with Ed must've brought out her aggressive side… _The blond almost smiled at the thought, even as he risked what he hoped wasn't life and limb to interpose himself between them. The move not only drew Kim's eyes from Shay, but not so incidentally both stopped Kim's hot retort to her lover and put some space between the two of them, "KP, Yori, chilax!"

"Yeah!" Shay and Rufus called out at one, the little mole rat looking worried while the former thief looked like she was filled with close to the same level of anger as Kim and Yori. Shay's attitude, while climbing from annoyed, past angry to outright enraged, was still controlled enough that she joined Ron in putting space between Yori and Kim. She even retained enough control to say in a surprisingly calm tone, "Calm down, both of you…"

"I am calm!" Yori and Kim countered loudly, splitting their glaring between Ron, Shay and even Rufus, before Yori turned and finally yelled at Kim, "There is nothing so-called about those men being Spetsnaz, Possible-_sama_! They are strong, trained and experienced, not just henchmen! You could_ not _have confronted them as you have if you were a 'regular girl'!" Yori threw air quotes up, mocking Kim's voice when saying the words, confirming in Ron's mind that being with Ed had indeed brought out Yori's aggressive side; especially when the look on her face became, if anything,_ angrier_ when she continued, "I can not believe you would so easily stain everyone else's honor to live up to some… Some_ fable _that you are less than you are! You are_ no_-…"

"Yori, that's enough!" Ron yelled, earning an angry glare from the teen and drawing a smug snort from Kim. He ignored the look Yori gave him by turning to Kim, "You too, KP! Both of you, just_ shut up_!" Kim flinched at his tone, her eyes narrowing at her fiancé and her body tensing as if ready to unload on him. Ron didn't give her a chance, raising his voice in a manner that shocked everyone else besides Kim, who had been in yelling matches with him several times in their lives, especially in the last six months, "I mean it, KP, you're egging this on as much as Yori is!"

Kim had obviously not expected Ron to come down against both of them, and the flash of hurt in her eyes made Ron wince internally. But, with his experience in arguing with his love, he knew that letting that show would give her that much more drive to 'win' the argument. "Ron…"

"Nu-uh, Princess…" Shay whispered harshly, "Zip it and listen…" When Kim turned her wounded and angry gaze at the security consultant, the woman smirked, deflating the heroine's attitude as easily as Ron's ignoring her had. To reinforce her own position, Shay smirked and added, "Please and thank you."

"Thanks, Shay." Ron said evenly, smoothly tripping up any anger Kim was about to direct at Shay, before turning back to Yori, his face stern and commanding, "_You _will_ not _call upon_ honor _right now, Yori! Not here, in_ our _house, against_ my _fiancée, when she has not_ intentionally _done anything to_ lessen _your honor! At most, her actions should require little more than an_ apology_, and you_ know _it!"

Yori's eyes widened at Ron's comment, and she was about to protest when his words, combined with Ron's commanding tone and bearing, filtered through her anger. Blinking, Yori backed off, nodding and bowing deeply to the Mystical Monkey Master, speaking lowly to him, "Ro-… Stoppable-sama… You are right…" Ron knew she wanted to look up at him, but she kept her gaze down and whispered, "I have no excuse, Stoppable-Sama"

"No harm done, Yori…" Ron said, knowing from her abashed tone she knew she'd taken things a bit far. Hearing Kim scoff, he spun and leveled the same gaze at her, "She's not the only one taking this too far, Kim, and you_ will listen _for a minute!"

"Why the hell is it okay for her to tweak out on me whe-…" Kim started in a loud, almost insulted tone as she glared at a chagrined but still angry Yori. She was silenced by a hand covering her mouth. She glared at the other body that had been interposed between herself and Yori, Shay's annoyed smirk answering her as much as the words she spoke.

"Because, Cupcake!" the former thief snapped, holding a hand firmly to the red-head's lips to forestall any protest, "She's got a point, and you constantly downing your own skills is getting_ fucking_**_ old_**!" When Kim's eyes flashed and she uttered a muffled protest, Shay took her hand away, raising an eyebrow expectantly.

"What?" Kim exclaimed, her anger starting to move to a new source, even as Shay's use of such a potent curse shocked Kim into a monosyllabic response.

Shay smirked, "You keep saying you're just a basic, average girl, but how do you explain that shit at the warehouse, hmmm?" The older woman pushed on when Kim blinked at her, shaking her head in frustration, "_Especially_ when_ everyone_ keeps telling you what, exactly, we were dealing with?"

Kim opened her mouth to speak, but Hirotaka stepped up with a PDA before she could, showing pictures of several of the men from the warehouse… Four of which Kim had fought, "Shay-san and Yori-chan speak the truth, Kim-sama! Wade-san was able to send this information a few moments ago! All of those men were at least at one point Spetsnaz, and some of them still are!" Shay moved her position to stand behind Kim, keeping her hands on the younger woman's shoulders as Hirotaka handed the PDA to Kim, "And they have all continued on their path of violence…"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Kim turned her attention to the PDA, the anger and annoyance clouding her entire being allowing her to shut out everyone else… She was prepared to skim over whatever information Hirotaka had brought up… Until she began to read what was on screen. She blinked as she stared at the little screen, reading both military dossiers and rap sheets. After several long seconds, her mouth was hanging open and she was shaking her head in denial of what she read._ This can't be… _she asserted to herself,_ I'm… I'm not some_ superhero _or anything like that! Ron and Shay, obviously, but…_

She paid close attention to the write-up about the first two men she'd taken down, the hardest to fight among the first group of six men, in something like awe. The older of the two had been Spetsnaz for almost as long as she'd been alive and was still a member of the special operations group, the other, younger man, had retired less than six months earlier. The elder of the two had seen full blown military action as recently as a month earlier, and_ both _had seen underworld action as recently as the prior week!

The younger had even earned the coveted maroon beret, indicating he was among 'the most professional, morally and physically fit among their contemporaries'. All of the men, as Hirotaka had said, had been in the Russian special forces at one time or another… And she'd torn through them like a physic. "Yori, I… I didn't mean to imply that you're unskilled, or Hiro or anyone else is! It's… It's just…" Kim paused, biting her lip in worry when the beautiful ninja turned away from her. "I'm not that special!" the red-head protested, her voice confused, "I'm just…"

"Don't you see, Possible-sama?" Yori asked softly, her anger dissipating as she saw just how hard Kim was taking the news. Even so, her voice heavy with emotion, "Your skills are constantly improving, you are strong, fast and incredibly intelligent."

"But, there's other people tha-…" Kim started, only to be interrupted by a once again annoyed sounding Shay.

"But nothing, Princess!" Shay turned her around and pinned her in place with a worried glare. Had the look in Shay's eyes been as annoyed as her tone, Kim would have protested, but the hurt, the worry she saw in the older woman's eyes, that she could_ feel _rolling off of the former thief in waves, much like she could feel from Ron, gave her pause. "Yes, there are_ individuals _that are smarter than you. Stronger. Faster. There's even people with more martial skill than you!" Kim nodded as if in agreement, "But, Kimmie… How many of those people combine it all into one package, hmmm?" Shay smirked down at her lover, snickering softly, "Let's see… There's me… Betts… Ron, after he started growing up…"

"Hey!" Ron protested, but smiled slightly when he saw both Kim and Yori relaxing.

"Truth!" Rufus said, his little body relaxing with the lessening tension in the room.

"Then there's Hirotaka here, Yori… Will Du, believe it or not… Perhaps a dozen or so other people in the world at close to your level…" Kim nodded, as if her own point had been made, when Shay murmured, "But, Princess… Almost all of them are below your level… I'm_ on _your level, but I have powers, same with Ron… And Hirotaka admitted he's less skilled than you are…"

"And Hirotaka-san is more skilled than I in combat…" Yori added.

"But he beat me when we sparred back in high scho-…" Kim's voice was strident in its protest, but a sharp bark of laughter stopped her, drawing her attention to Hiro.

"Possible-sama, I was forced to fight at nearly one hundred percent of my ability to do so!" He shook his head in wonder at the red-head, "And you were only taking it as seriously as a sparring match between friends! You were better than I then, and now?" He made sure she was staring into his eyes as he continued, "Now, you've had two years to improve, Kim-sama. It is not only your closeness to Ron-sama that you have earned an honorific of respect!"

"But…" Kim was forced to swallow against a lump in her throat, fears she'd felt for years, that had been uncovered and brought to the fore of her mind by a villain that had tried to ruin her, welling up chokingly, "But wh-what if I screw up?" Kim whispered the words, biting her lip again, almost hard enough to draw blood, "What if I start believing I'm more than just a basic, average girl, and I screw up 'cause of that…"

"Is_ that _what this is all about? Your 'no big' attitude?" Shay asked sharply, earning a reluctant nod from Kim, "You're shitting me…" The pale woman snickered, then began to chuckle, earning queer expressions from everyone but Kim, who was beginning to feel a mix of embarrassment and anger at her lover.

"It's not funny!" Kim snapped half-heartedly, her belief in her own words beginning to falter. She sighed, frustration and hurt evident despite the softness of her voice when she continued, "It was bad enough in high school dealing with everything else without having people point and stare or talk…"

"I'm sure, Princess," Shay interrupted gently, "I know all about that, trust me… From the way it sounds, though… It boils down to you being scared of failing…" Kim huffed and pouted, crossing her arms and turning from Shay, earning a chuckle from Yori and Ron at her reaction. "You see, Kimmie…" Shay pulled the red-head close, draping her arms over the younger woman's shoulders and clasping her hands over her heart, "You_ are _right in one aspect of being a basic, average girl… You're just as scared to be more than you seem as any other girl_ or _woman out there… As scared to fail as any woman, any_ human being_, really… And terrified, I'd guess, about turning into what Rockwaller was before Junior came into her life if you didn't just pass it off as nothing… If you didn't seem completely grounded." The former thief paused and kissed the nape of Kim's neck, before unclasping her hands and moving them to the red-head's back, running her hands up and down soothingly, "But you forgot something… You don't have to keep yourself grounded alone; you have friends and family to keep you grounded… Like Ron says, we've got your back… And we, hell, the_ world _needs you to stay grounded… Do you ever think we'd let you get_ that _big of a head on your shoulders, hmmm?"

"I… No!" Kim started, her tone belligerent… But one look into Yori's still hurt eyes stopped her, drawing a sigh from the red-head, "No…" She looked away, grimacing slightly, "No, I guess not…"

"Then stop trying to act like every person in the world can do what you do, Kim-chan." Hirotaka laughed softly when the red-head flinched, not having expected his words, or his old honorific, "It not only makes others feel insulted, it is an insult to yourself, as well."

"I…" Kim looked between her fiancé, her lover, Rufus and her two friends via Ron, before letting loose a shuddering sigh, "You guys sound_ so _sure about this…" There were nods all around and she closed her eyes, "Okay… I… I'll try, 'kay? I…" She swallowed again, looking down at the floor beneath their feet, "I'll need help…"

"You have it all around you, Kim-chan…" Yori said softly, taking a deep, cleansing breath and letting her anger at her fellow teen flow from her like a cleansing winter wind, "I may have been out of line, but please understand… It is only because I felt so slighted."

"And possibly due to womanly problems." Hirotaka said innocently… After making sure he was out of the range of any easy strikes.

"Hirotaka-san!" Yori cried, blushing brightly and her tone becoming more belligerent "You and Eddy-chan's insistence on my suffering PMS is_ not _amusing!"

"No, it's actually aggravating!" Shay said with an understanding chuckle, before turning to Kim, "But, be that as it may, Princess… We're gonna sit down and have a nice, long talk about everything that has you feeling like you have to act like this, 'kay?" Kim grumbled under her breath, but nodded in agreement, "And hopefully… We'll get it settled enough before that interview tomorrow." The older woman laughed, grimacing slightly, "God knows, you do_ not _want to be uncertain about anything in those kinds of interviews!"

"You're probably right." Kim sighed again, looking at Yori, "Yori, seriously… I'm sorry about making you feel…"

"It is okay, Kim-chan…" Yori interrupted, reaching a hand out to Kim. When the red-head took the hand, Yori pulled her into a hug, saying simply, "Sometimes, even the humblest of people act in arrogance, and the most well controlled act out in anger. As Eddy-chan would say, no harm, no foul?"

"Yeah…" Kim smiled, glancing over at Shay and Ron, who had moved to the kitchen to whip up something together, "And on that note… I really_ am _hungry, and Team Possible's cooks are on duty!"

"Hey!" Shay cried in mock outrage, "I'm only your cook if I get a kiss out of it!"

"Well…" Kim snickered, pushing her issues down into a little mental box until they were brought up later, "How 'bout if I offer more than kissing later?"

"Kim-chan!" Yori cried, blushing once again. The reaction drew laughs from everyone, even Yori, though Kim kept her attention on the slightly older teen.

Kim found herself, lost in thought for several long moments. Yori was an incredible fighter, beautiful and after getting together with Edward Lipsky, quite an extrovert. Even if she was suffering from PMS, Kim knew that the ninja's newly found attitude had more to do with the confrontation than anything else. Yori was becoming a very outspoken, something Kim always felt she was, but now knew otherwise. After all, if she had been, she'd never have… Hidden, behind being a basic, average girl. As Shay had said, when it came to her worries, about who she was, about fitting in, when it came to being around people or her peers? She could quite honestly say she was that basic, average girl she'd always complained she was. When it came to what she did, what she could_ do_, however? She knew she wasn't so basic or average… It was just hard to swallow!_  
_

Silently, the red-head vowed that she would do everything in her power to never, ever give someone cause to feel as Yori had tonight. It wouldn't be easy, admitting that she was as exceptional as some people believed... But, Kim knew, it would be as rewarding to accomplish as anything else she'd ever done in her life…

**Author's Notes**

Well, I hope the fight wasn't a let down! While I wanted to close it out in this chapter, I wanted to leave some aspects of it somewhat ambiguous; as often happens in battle, when speaking from one person's viewpoint, they tend to be on one particular thing at the time, and as such, they miss some things, or only catch the tail end. Still, quite a few things happened in this chapter, some surprising revelations, and some shocking moments of, hopefully, awesome… Seriously!

Then there was the end, with Kim and Yori almost goin' all catfight on each other. Luckily, calmer heads prevailed, but both girls had points to their views. I hope that came across how I intended, as it is important

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work! And remember: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Foreword**

Okay, that's one hell of a delay… Thirty-two days to get this chapter out. Unfortunately, things got a bit futzy around Christmas and New Years, I've been busy dealing with real life stuffs, and my flow/feel beta, Neo the Saiyan Angel, has been busy as all get out at work… For example, last week she put in _thirty _hours of_ overtime _at her job! o_o! And she's nonetheless managed to actually take some time to beta for me!

The aforementioned real life? That's also why I have this particularly large Author's Foreword… I've decided upon changing my format somewhat; while I, personally, like weighty, meaty chapters to read, I understand that others might not have the time or such to read them, or at least read them without having to come back to it later! So what I'm planning on is to start trying to hold my chapters at specific lengths. I'm_ trying _to shoot for about 10k-words or, preferably, less per chapter… With the Author's Foreward and Notes included… There will undoubtedly be times when I go over this (this chapter, for instance, thanks to these notes) and at other times… After all, sometimes, you just_ have _to go big! Be that as it may, however, I'll try to avoid that from now on. That way, I can get a chapter out every two weeks, possibly every week, I won't kill Neo off with absolutely huge chapters to beta, and you guys'll get more chapters per month. I just hope it works out that way!

I'm also going to put up a few (probably non-beta'd by anyone other than myself) side stories for Vacation from the Norm, as well as another fic I'm workin' on, in the near future. Hopefully you guys'll continue to enjoy this and will have a chance to enjoy the others. With that said… On to the review reply!

Mack53B: glad you enjoyed the chapter, and hope to see more of your opinions on them in the future! Yes, Kim's finally pulled her head out, as it were and, while she's more like her old self, she's also growing up a bit. Hopefully I'm portraying that well…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay glanced at the bedside clock, raising an eyebrow in surprise when it read merely 1:42 a.m._ Another hour and eighteen minutes before Gale's show comes on… _she sighed with the thought, glancing to her left. She smiled softly as she spied a thatch of blond hair just peeking from underneath a toned, surprisingly strong arm._ And you, Ronald Stoppable, are _still_ a goofball, even if you did the most keep me from_ completely_ losing it yesterday morning!_

Of course… It was essentially returning the favor from the night after the mission. Instead of cooking, like originally planned, the three of them and Rufus had gone out to eat with Yori and Hirotaka. Afterwards, they'd briefly met up with Motor Ed, DeMenz, Joseph Markus, Helga and Falsetto, before returning home for a good night's rest before the interview… When something Ron saw on an advertisement sent him into a flashback.

It had been better than a sleeping flashback, but… Not much. Seeing someone she'd come to care for crying and begging forgiveness as he stared at something only he could see, and being unable to comfort him easily for fear of his lashing out had sucked! And then there'd been his call to his psychologist, who he had, at Shay's suggestion, switched to Ima Kopffall.

It was a good thing, too; they'd all needed to talk to someone after that mission, and she'd been more than happy to help all of them. After all, none of them were used to seeing violence on such a… Base level. Calling it troubling would be an understatement, but it was something that had to be dealt with. As Shay had pointed out to both Kim and Ron, some villains were starting to cross over towards 'real' criminal pursuits, with a few leaning towards outright terrorism. It was as if the Lorwardian invasion and the so-called fall of Shego and Drakken from villainy to being 'the good guys' had been a sign that supervillainy was on the outs. But the talking had been good, and had brought a few of their fears about such violence out to be aired, instead of festering within…

Her thoughts were brought to a halt when she felt a twinge in her back. She stretched slightly, trying not to disturb the man sleeping next to her in her… In_ their _bed next. There was a brief, and quite odd, sensation of revulsion at the thought of being close to a man she had feelings for, contrasting with the shivery, butterflies in her stomach sensation at the same thing. She resisted the urge to both snort derisively at herself and giggle like she used to so many years ago…

The sound of Kim rummaging through the refrigerator downstairs stopped her thoughts briefly, something she was quite thankful for. She allowed the sound to draw her eyes to the doorway, which drew a soft sigh from her. She wondered briefly if the heroine would eat whatever snack she was getting downstairs or bring some up. She hoped the latter, contemplating waking Rufus up to take the suggestion down to Kim before discarded it. Rufus was still worn out from the events that had lead up to the battle at the warehouse and the interview early the prior day.

_She handled it so well… _Shay thought with a soft giggle. Her amusement faded slightly as she thought about her own reactions, a moue slowly overtaking her smile._ Here I was warning _her_ that Gale got people to cry, and what do I do?_

The thought brought her attention back to the man sleeping next to her._ Yeah, no doubt he's stopped being a _boy_, for sure! _A chuckle burbled its way from her throat, causing Ron to stir slightly. Shay bit her lips lightly to stop her rueful mirth, a smile playing again at the edges of those same lips as the blond draped his right arm around her shoulders in his sleep. She again felt that odd mix of revulsion and butterflies as his arm moved from lying across his eyes to around her back, pulling her slightly closer; instead of fighting his arm's urging, she allowed it. She sat up slightly, placing her left arm over his and draped her right leg across his, carefully entwining their legs. When his arm was settled under hers, she settled back down slightly so she had a good view of him, all the while staring at his face.

"You really have gotten pretty cute, Doofus…" Shay whispered softly, her smile spreading into a soft, beatific expression of contentment. To her amazement, the revulsion didn't stay at the same level, but_ decreased_ while the butterflies_ increased_. She also felt tingling spread across the back of her neck, which flowed across her shoulders and down her spine before seeming to spread across her belly at the butterflies urging. It finally settled about her core, leaving the faintest tingling there, something she hadn't felt before in Ron's presence… At all.

She blinked, shocked at that little tidbit; she hadn't felt that for him until that moment… Her smile fell somewhat, but into an expression of curiosity as she thought about it. He_ was _attractive, after all… She blinked again and brought her right arm up to trace the contours of his chin and jaw. While he'd never have what could be called a 'manly' jaw, his jaw, like all of him, had definitely become more masculine since she'd been Miss Go. As she passed her fingertips across his lips, she admitted to herself that his lips, while most definitely masculine in shape, had a delicious softness to them; even during those times she felt revulsion at being close to him that softness was just plain_ nice_, making his lips so very,_ very _kissable.

Her fingers and their soft, ticklish touch on hi lips drew a soft snort from Ron, prompting the sleeping blond to pull his lips into his mouth to worry at them briefly. With a halting, sleep filled "Harumph!", Ron blew a breath across his lips, making a motorboat sound that almost made Shay laugh._ I wonder how he'd react if he woke up with me next to him like this? _she wondered. Here she was, touching his face with very little hesitation, able to trail her fingers down to her chest without feeling grossed out - or hearing the annoying, superior voice that wasn't quite her own speaking in her head - and Ron was sleeping through it. She couldn't really complain about his being asleep, though. To be honest, she was still worried about some aspects of what she was doing, especially with the voice and her seemingly random disgust with the thought of being with Ron… But the voice was what worried her most, afraid that it would wait until she least expected it to say something, to make her regret pushing forward. But, until then, she'd enjoy it…

Keeping her soft smile in place, she trailed spread fingers down from his neck to between his pectorals, causing the muscles to bunch and making him squirm slightly. Like the rest of his body, they weren't particularly huge, but they were solid and nicely shaped._ Just a little more size and he'd be perfect…_ the woman thought with a slight smirk on her lips,_ As it is, he's got the_ perfect _amount of bodyfat… Kimmie's lucky… _The thought brought her hand to a pause over his heart, the steady beat surprisingly soothing to the security consultant._ I guess… I'm lucky too? _She thought about it for a moment, nodding hesitantly, her shorter hair just brushing Ron's arm and shoulder, making more muscles to bunch briefly,_ He_ does _love me as much as he does Princess, after all…_

The thought filtered lazily through her mind, her hand moving as if of its own accord down from his chest, across his abs. They weren't particularly defined, like a body builders or some of the men she'd gone after in the past, but that didn't matter to her. As she'd pointed out to herself, his bodyfat was perfect in her eyes, meaning that the noticeable vertical definition at the sides and in between his abdominals, as well as the faint crosswise definition was_ just _right. Not necessarily a turn on - she'd never really been one for getting turned on by abs - but comfortable and attractive; it lent his torso the look of soft peaks of muscle that let anyone that saw him topless know he kept in shape, but not insanely so. It was so comforting, so…_ Ron_… Shay decided with a soft titter.

Despite seeming to move of their own accord, she made sure to keep the touch of her fingers soft, raising her hand so only the tips of her fingernails grazed across his skin. As his pectorals had, the blond's abs tightened slightly at the ticklish sensation, drawing a slightly louder titter from Shay as she trailed her fingers around his navel in alternating wide and close circles. She didn't seem to hear his muttered, partially coherent protest, but she did look up when he snorted a soft snore and tightened his arm about her back. She paused her movements, watching his face until a slight movement from the edge of her vision caught her attention. She looked down, almost letting out a peal of delighted laughter at the sight she beheld. The wider, unconsciously moving circles had fallen brush through his pubic hair, even brushing against the base of his shaft. The actions had, not unsurprisingly, gotten at least one rise out of him, even in his sleep.

"If I can ever get over myself," Shay whispered as she watched him harden, "I don't think I'd_ ever _complain about_ that _kind of reaction…" She chuckled as she remembered saying that to Harley once… And while she felt a solid stab of melancholy, it wasn't the devastating pain it had been over the last few weeks. "Not seriously, anyway…"

Licking her lips, she consciously urged her hand to trail down, through the thick curls of his pubic hair, until she was just touching between the base of his partially hardened shaft and its middle with her index and middle fingers. She let her hand sit there, unmoving, for several seconds, reveling in the lack of the voice screaming in the back of her head, the feeling of the tingle at the apex of her legs increasing… She thought back to the first time she'd touched him there, without conscious thought, during her first night with Kimmie…

She shook her head in wonder at her progress… She'd barely been able to stand being _near_ him intimately, let alone while doing what she'd been doing. The only thing at the time that kept her from freaking out was her own force of will and the fact that her princess enjoyed them both so much… The red-head had even helping her to tolerate his arm around her afterward. Now, here she was, a week later, able to touch him of her own volition without either negative reaction being more than a barely noticeable footnote.

Licking her lips again and swallowing against a nervously dry throat, she edged her hand forward, spreading her fingers and thumb outwards until the webbing of her thumb and index finger touched the shaft. Swallowing again, she slid that webbing upwards until she could grasp his shaft with her hand, gently curling her fingers around it and holding her hand there. The teen let out a half gasping groan at the sensation, almost making a coherent comment, yet sounding as if he were dreaming at the same time. Shay paused, awaiting… Something… The revulsion did make its presence known briefly, but her wonder at holding the manhood of a man she had admitted starting to fall in love with held her transfixed… And the wonder drowned out the feeling of revulsion in short order.

Ron's body reacted to the attention his manhood received by hardening to the point of throbbing under Shay's gentle grasp. She gasped softly as she watched him harden the rest of the way, biting her lip as he reached his full length and girth in what felt like no time at all. "Wow…" she whispered, in awe at the sight before her. It felt... Right.

She blinked, breaking her transfixion and allowing her to contemplate if she should let go… Or move forward. She was unsure and scared to figure it out, but a conversation between her and Ron stuck her mind at that moment. They'd been standing in the kitchen, and Ron had seen her cooking in an apron…_ Just _an apron…

She remembered, after a very personal conversation, telling him, _"Just 'cause I said I have limits, I don't want to even have to think about you pushing yourself too hard and turn into something you're not, Doofus. Kimmie… Kimmie shouldn't worry about us getting along… Or us turning into something we're not… I…"_

He'd just smiled gently and cupped her face in his palms, telling her,_ "And I will point out if I see you pushing yourself too far in the same way, deal?" _She'd nodded, and thinking back on it… She was pretty sure she could do this without truly pushing herself.

Her face again blossomed into a smile, and she gently tightened her grip, then, after taking a deep breath, she began to slowly move her hand up and down. She wasn't planning on bringing him to orgasm, but she wanted to prove, to herself if no one else, that she_ could _do this. She kept her slow stroking up for easily half a minute, drawing a few semi-coherent gasps and quickened breathing from Ron, before a sound from the door stopped her; a soft, startled sound somewhere between a moan and a giggle drew her attention.

With her hand still on Ron's hard manhood, she glanced to her right and saw Kim standing in the doorway, the bed tray from Shay's… From_ their _room, in her hands and filled with fruit, cheese, some bread and, most importantly to Shay, coffee. Kim's face was a mix of surprise, desire and, to Shay's relief, happiness at the sight before her, the tone of her voice confirming those emotions, "I guess you_ are _feeling better about Ronnie, hmmm?"

"I'm…" Shay said, nodding slightly as she moved as if to make room for the bed tray. Kim must have seen the reluctance in Shego, as she shook her head and winked, nodding as if to tell Shego to keep her hand there. Shego caught on, but was shocked at how must the idea of letting go had bothered her. In answer to Kim, she shrugged slightly, blushing as she looked at her red-headed lover, "Yeah… Yeah, I am."

"Good…" Kim said softly, walking around the bed and gently settling herself down on the other side of Ron, doing her best not to wake him as she set the tray down over her own legs. She poured a cup of coffee and glanced over at Shay and, with a wicked gleam in her eyes, whispered, "You don't have to stop if you didn't want to…"

"I know…" Shay smirked softly, her blush intensifying slightly, "But it was as good a time as any… I'm… Not quite ready to do that while he's awake… But…"

"It's okay," Kim assured her, offering her girlfriend a cup of coffee, before looking back at her fiancé, reaching out to gently stroke her fingers across his forehead. The action seemed to soothe his rising state of wakefulness, an action that Shay knew, as if by instinct, Kim was doing for_ her_. "But if he wakes up with enough time, I might be making a mess of our bed with him…"

"Thanks, Princess." Shay said while sitting up slightly. When she was settled enough to balance herself without her arms, she reached her now free hand out to take the coffee from her lover. She took a sip and let out a slow breath, her attention focused on Ron's manhood and her hand as she just… Held him. "And as for making a mess?_ That_, at least, is something that hasn't bothered me since the first night!"

"Then what's bothering you right now?" Kim asked just as softly. Shay thought about looking up, but didn't; instead, she bit her lip and took a moment, as if steeling herself for something, before plunging ahead.

"Kim, I…" Shay's face became pensive, worried, "I hate to ask this, but… I know you trust me, but_ how much _do you trust me?" She stole a furtive glance at Kim, before looking back at Ron, "I'm… Only asking this 'cause_ I _trust_ you_… As in, forever and always kind of trust…" She gave a half shrug and smirked slightly, before her face again became pensive, "And, after everything, Ron, too…"

"I trust you completely, obviously…" Kim said with a startlingly light tone "I mean, I've fallen in love with you, right?" She paused just long enough for Shay to nod, before continuing, "As cliché as it sounds, I've trusted you with my mind, my heart… Even my body and soul, just as you have with me… I've even trusted you with Ron…_ My _Ron, Shay, and I can be a real greedy bitch when I want to be,_ especially _when it comes to Ron…"

"But for how long?" Shay asked softly, "Honestly… I've trusted you for a while, now…"

I think…" Kim started, pausing to think back, "I think I've trusted you since, um…" Shay felt her shift slightly as she reached for something on the tray. Popping a slice of something into her mouth, she chewed a moment before answering, "I'd say since that one Christmas… The one you and Drew spent together with Ron and the fam and I?" Again, she waited, and Shego nodded, remembering that with some fondness. "After that, our fights became more like serious sparring; no less potentially dangerous, but not as… As edgy, as deadly, y'know?" Shay grunted, then Kim made a considering sound, "Well, except for a month or so after the Li'l Diablo sitch, but then, about two weeks later… I learned you had next to nothing to do with it, and didn't know just how deep Drakken's plan had affected me…" Kim let out a huff, shaking her head slightly, "I forgave you when I found out, because I honestly think you'd have nixed it if you knew just how bad it'd have messed me up…" Shay glanced over at her again, her eyes wide and blinking.

"I… Can't honestly say I would have, Kimmie…" Shay whispered, looking away from her, even Ron, focusing her attention on the old newspaper clipping from Go City, "I was evil, even if I didn't really want to really hurt you then, physically, at least…" She closed her eyes, waiting for Kim to say something that would hurt her. She was shocked when the heroine's voice stayed soft and, if anything, sounded as if she understood Shay's fear without the former thief having given voice to it.

"But that's my point, Shay…" Kim's voice told the pale woman just how warm the smile the red-head had to be wearing was, "Whether you would or wouldn't have is immaterial._ I _trust you_ that much_, and even_ then_, at least when I found out how little you knew, I trusted that you wouldn't have." Shay had had no idea how Kim knew that, but knowing that Kim, even after what'd happened, had still trusted her_ that _much…

"I…" Shay started, only to pause again as she lost her voice. The voice that worried her so began to calm its ranting down, and she felt the revulsion trying to well up again. To push herself forward and raise the voice's anger, during which she had more control of herself, she took a deep gulp of her coffee. The hot liquid would have scalded most people, but heated her pleasantly, oddly allowing her to chase the revulsion back down and bringing the rage back to that unnerving voice. After swallowing, she found her voice once again and blurted, "I don't know if Ronnie does, though, Princess…" She finally looked back at Kim, shamefaced at her admission, only to see a soft moue of understanding on the red-head's face.

"I can see why, strangely…" Kim muttered, stopping her soft stroking of Ron's forehead. She reached down and laid a gentle hand on the hand where Shay still grasped Ron's hardness, squeezing gently. "Honestly, Shay, he just… Does. He's always trusted you enough to have my back, even back when you were claiming to be all freaky-deaky evil and everything… He allowed himself to trust me with you, right?" Another nod from Shay brought a happy smile back to Kim's face, "It's… Honestly, it's just_ Ron_! I've known him for fourteen years, and I_ still _don't get him at times! But it's obvious he trusts you, y'know?"

"I know, but…" Shay murmured, shaking her head in worry, "But…_ Why _does he trust me? How?" She bit her lip again, her face screwing up in confusion, "I mean, barely four months ago, he was_ real _nervous when I showed up at the Space Center and shanghaied your dad's suit and position in his rocket… Like he thought after we got up to the idiot greenies ship that I'd leave you two behind and make off with Drakken…"

"Ron's just paranoid like that!" Kim chuckled softly, pulling her hand back to take up her own coffee and take a sip, "But, honestly… When you showed that you were making a good faith effort to stay good, and after everything in Munich?" She shrugged slightly as Shay brought her coffee back to her lips, "It's just how he is, like I said… I know it's weird, but like I said when I was four, and like I still believe, I like weird…" Kim let out a giggle as Shay brought her coffee back up to her lips, "Though I'll admit I'm glad that his near fetish with cheese isn't something that comes into the bedroom! Chocolate sauce or whipped cream is fine by me!"

Shay had just taken a sip and almost spit took at the phrase she'd heard several times before. For some reason, that made the security consultant's worries lessen, though not disappear. She swallowed the coffee before it could send her into a coughing fit, giving Kim a light glare before smiling herself. It wasn't a full smile, but she saw that Kim was accepting it at face value, "I'll grant you that, Princess." Shay paused for a moment, shaking her head in confusion, "Still… It kinda worries me how… How_ easily _he trusts me…"

"Tell ya what," Kim offered in a considering tone, "When you're showering tomorrow, I'll ask him, and get at least an idea why, if you promise not to worry too much about it, 'kay?"

"Deal…" Shego said in close to her normal tone, "Just don't leave me hanging, Pumpkin…"

"Wha's'at?" Ron asked as their conversation finally drew him from his sleep, "Wha's up, 'n' why'd ya be hangin'?"

"Nothing for you to worry 'bout, Sport…" Shay said with a quiet but delighted titter, the expression of emotion so out of place to Ron's experience with her that he seemed wake fully in the span of a second. When she saw that his attention was on her, she smirked and pointed out his not-so-small problem with a few slow, teasing up and down strokes of the hand still on his shaft. She bit her lip at seeing his wide, shocked eyes upon her, the coy look obviously turning him on a bit more, even as his attention drew the revulsion up a step higher than it had been… But not so much that she was unable to ignore it. "Just… Enjoying your reaction to me being all snuggled up to you a few minutes ago…"

"I'm, um…" Ron gulped, obviously worried that, unconsciously, he'd pushed her too far for her liking. Then she made sure he knew she was okay with it by slowly and gently stroking him a few more times. Despite the screaming of the voice, and her own lack of surprise that her actions had drawn it out, she was glad its sputtering gibberish made it easy to ignore. That very ability to ignore the voice allowed her to hear a blushing, squeaked reply from Ron, "I… Um… Guess it's okay with me if it's okay with you?"

"It's…" Shay let go, forcing herself to be casual in her action, "It's okay, for now at least, Ronnie…" She stared down into his eyes, pouring all of her emotion into the gaze, "I promise…"

"Okay…" he breathed, then noticed that she had coffee in her other hand, then glanced at the bed tray sitting across Kim's legs, "Oh, hey, breakfast!"

"Yup…" Kim murmured as Shay rolled her eyes at Ron's short attention span, before the red-head took the tray out of his reach, "And you'll get some… After_ I _get some…"

"Er…" Ron said, glancing down at himself, then back at Kim, "Can I at least get an apple slice for energy?"

"Couldn't hurt, Princess…" Shay chuckled, twisting in an unconsciously sensuous manner to set her coffee cup down on the nightstand. When she turned back, she let go of him and reached out, holding her hands out for the tray, "I'll take this downstairs and get the TV ready…" She shook her head as Kim pouted slightly, "Oh, I'm gonna be back to make sure you two make it quick! We_ all _agreed we wanted to see how they present the interview_ together_, after all!"

"Well, hurry up, then!" Kim giggled, glancing at the clock, "We only have fifty minutes before the show, and I wanna have some fun with both of you before it's on!" With that, she reached out and snagged a few apple slices from the tray, a positively sinful expression on her face.

"Yes, ma'am!" Shay said in a teasingly mocking fashion, putting an extra bit of sway into her hips as she left the room, flushing happily at the knowledge that the eyes of the two people she cared for so deeply for would be glued to her for as long as she was in sight…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Good evening everybody, and welcome to the Summer Gale Report!" the older blond woman said, no longer dying her hair to hide the streaks of gray in the just past shoulder length mass. Her smile, unlike the one she'd worn in the past, was honest and surprisingly open as she addressed the camera, "This week, as I'm sure you've seen on our advertisements, we have four very special guests!"

"Huh," Jim Possible grunted, his twin Tim continuing, "Wow... She actually looks…_ Younger _than she did… During the toxic snowmen thing!"

"You've seen them on TV before, of course…" Summer continued, but the red-head in the room with the barely teenaged boys couldn't help but respond to their commentary.

"She even…" Tim chuckled, Jim joining him and continuing, "Seems like a…_ Real _reporter!"

"That's not nice, boys…" Anne smirked, remembering how the woman had gone after her daughter a few years before.

"Yeah," Tim started, with Jim continuing, "But we kinda thought… That she'd end up… Laying it on… A lot thicker! Especially considering… Her past with Kim!"

"I don't know, boys," James chuckled softly, "Her report during the Li'l Diablos and after was well done…" James nodded as he reached to the bowl in his wife's lap, grabbing some popcorn as some of Team Possible's and Team Go's more heroic moments flashed by, the latter's concentrating on Shego. "She seems to have been one of those people that needed to truly fall to their depths before rising above."

"You might be right, Honey." Anne smiled proudly at her husband, holding his hand in the bowl long enough to give his forearm a comfortable squeeze. She was almost surprised to see Shego being portrayed as both a former heroine and villain in the lead up to the interview, especially when they knew some of what was coming._ At least they're handling her fall and climb back to the good guys with tact…_

"You might be more familiar with the former superthief and sidekick to Dr. Drew 'Drakken' Lipsky from her colorful past," Summer's voice intoned with the just right mix of seriousness, grudging respect and relief that the commentary called for, "But many people had no idea she was once a heroine, and some still consider her a potential wild card in the world at large, despite saving the entire world with Team Possible, and more recently, a train full of commuters and the entire city of Frankfurt, Germany."

The intro ended with a side-by-side view of her and Drew at the UN Assembly and in a hospital bed. In the first picture, he blue scientist receiving his medal. The second showed her in the bed with various leads hooked up to her, with Ron, Rufus on his shoulder and Kim standing to one side of the bed. In the foreground of that image was a small, black woman and a large, blond man stood towards the foot of the bed with their backs to the camera. The view then faded back to a view of Summer on her plush recliner, the loveseat next to her different than normal, but filled with the members of Team Possible Alpha, as Joss had dubbed them and both Wade and Kim had agreed to, "Good evening, you thre-…" She paused as she glanced at Ron's shoulder, smiling, "I'm sorry, Rufus,_ four_, and thank you for the interview!"

"Not a problem, Summer!" Kim chirped, reaching out to take the older woman's outstretched hand in hers.

"Hey, check it!" Jim laughed, pointing at Ron, Tim continuing his thought, "He's not nearly as nervous… As he was during the… Interviews after the… Invasion!"

"Now, boys…" James chuckled, "Even with their current relationship, that might be your older brother some day…"

"Or_ Shego _might…" Tim started, with Jim finishing in a devilish tone, "Become our sister!"

"You never know, boys," Anne said, her mouth open as if she were going to add something, but the screen caught her attention. She smirked at her two youngest and whispered, "Now, hush!"

Their attention returned to the TV in time to hear Shego answering a question Summer had asked them, "…but despite the way it started out, running into them over in Munich was a_ lot _of fun!" All three of the original field members of Team Possible chuckled, Kim blushing a bit, "But you're right, we… Worked it out, I guess is the best way to say it…"

"Well," Summer said in a considering fashion, "it's a good thing it did, especially considering the announcement on the Team Possible website on Tuesday morning!" She regarded Shego with a raised eyebrow, "What's it like to be part of a hero team for the first time in, what has it been, five years?"

"Almost six." Shego clarified, her smile looking slightly plastic as she thought of her brothers. Kim elbowed her lightly, drawing a half chuckle from Shego before the older woman continued, "But, in a word, it's… Amazing. I guess a lot of sibling tension caused problems for Team Go, and that's virtually nonexistent with Team Possible."

"Yeah!" Rufus cried, drawing a chuckle from the Doctors Possible, Jim and Tim. Rufus made several gesticulations and a few chitters, pointing at Shego, Kim and Ron, then making several martial arts moves.

"Rufus said," Ron translated for Summer's benefit, "That we four work really well together." Rufus made some more sounds and pantomimes, drawing a bigger smile from Ron, "And we're all in agreement about Kim's cousin, Joss, and Kim, Rufus and my friend Felix; they've_ earned _the title of Team Possible Bravo."

"I'm still surprised that Slim's letting Joss do the hero thing…" James chuckled, "But I'm glad he's not as much a worry-wort as I am."

"And_ I'm _glad you've relaxed about Kimmie-cub, James…" Anne murmured softly, then glanced at the twins, who were watching the screen with surprisingly rapt attention at the moment, "Now we just have to get our sons to mature like our daughter has!"

"Amen to that…" James sighed softly, smiling fondly at his sons before turning his attention back to the screen, pulling Anne slightly closer to him…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

The Stoppables, Hana, Felix, as well as Slim and Joss Possible, sat around the positively huge, not to mention cutting edge, entertainment system in the basement of Slim's home. The eighty inch LED HDTV was housed in what was literally a home theater set up, along with speakers that had made his niece drool the last time she'd visited. On the screen, Team Possible Alpha were laughing as they discussed an older mission from the time Shego had been a villainess, one that Slim had first hand knowledge of. After all, it'd happened on his ranch!

Although the pale woman seemed a touch uncomfortable, she was still amused at the retelling, however brief it was. It was the last of three different discussions of supervillains and mind control, which Slim knew was leading up to something that his niece would find terribly uncomfortable to talk about. "I sure hope li'l Kimmie's ready t'talk 'bout what happened with her 'n' Squirt…"

"Oh, I'm sure she feels it's necessary." Jean Stoppable said with a confident tone, "She's a strong one, our son's fiancée."

"Indeed she is…" Gene Stoppable agreed, glancing over at Hana, who was excited to see her brother, her friend Rufus and 'Sissy-KP' on the big screen. She also seemed absolutely fascinated with Shego for some reason which her adoptive father presumed had something to do with her skintone. "And she has Ronald, Shego, and Rufus there to help her through it, even when she isn't."

"Eh, Cousin Kim'll be fine." Joss countered mildly, snuggling into Felix's chest, taking care not to hurt Felix's unfeeling legs.

"Hopefully…" Felix said in a low tone, "You never got a chance to see her just before the vacation, Joss… She was a wreck in the making…"

"Well, there wer-…" Joss started, only to feel a piece of caramel corn bounce off of her forehead. She glanced over to see a slightly annoyed Hana raise a finger and shush her. Under most circumstances, a mid teens girl of Joss' known aggressiveness may have taken issue with it, but she'd heard about Hana from Ron and Kim… And besides, Slim noted, Joss thought the little girl was the cutest little girl in the world and was completely taken with her… As evidenced by the teen's whispered reaction to the little one's shushing, "Sorry, Hana!"

"I can see how that's not as far fetched as most would imagine…" Summer murmured with a slight frown, "And you're saying this supervillain affected both you_ and _your father's brain chemistry?"

"Yes, unfortunately." Kim nodded, her face troubled, "Dad's wasn't as thorough as mine was, we presume due to a lesser exposure. When the process was reversed on him, he returned to normal within five hours, to the point that his security clearance had no need to be revoked."

"That was a relief…" Shay murmured, giving the obviously tense Kim a hug, "You were awfully worried about that, when everything got straightened out with you, Pumpkin…"

"Well, doy!" Kim replied, chuckling ruefully, "He's my Dad…" She turned back to Summer, her face serious, "Luckily, though, I'm back to normal as well and we know what to look for now so we shouldn't have to worry about it in the future."

"Shego," Summer said, turning back to the older member of the team, "I understand that this isn't uncommon for Team Possible, but had you encountered attacks such as this before encountering Team Possible as a heroine_ or _during your time as a villainess before or after meeting Team Possible?"

"Yes, and yes…" Shego nodded easily, "Like Tokyo when it comes to Japan, or Frankfurt when it comes to Germany, tech-savvy villains tend towards mind or emotional control at least once in their career." She smiled a somewhat awkward smile, "Or, if they're like Drew, several times!" She paused, grimacing in annoyance, "My_ first _employer tried mind control on me, hoping to take liberties. It didn't work well for him, and while Drew tried mind control, he only did it to have what he hoped was the perfect duo of weapons, that being Kimmie and me. Suffice it to say, it's something I loathe…"

"I can understand that…" Summer nodded, before turning to the camera, "I hate to break into this, but we'll be right back to the interview with Team Possible Alpha!"

With that, the program broke to commercial, Summer promising more questions for the team, which drew a relieved sigh from Joss. "I'll be right back, I gotta hit th' bathroom!"

Felix reached out just as the auburn haired girl stood and tickled her just under the armpits, saying, "Better hurry!"

"Felix, ya jerk!" Joss cried as she jumped away from him, covering her armpits and walking awkwardly as everyone else chuckled at her distress, "That isn' funny, y'know!"

"Depen's on your position, Sweat Pea!" Slim called after her, shaking his head in amusement. He turned back to Gene and raised an eyebrow, "So, y'all're fine with th' whole thing goin' on b'tween Ron, Kimmie an' Shego?"

"Fine?" Jean answered before her husband, glancing at him with a troubled smile, "I'm… Not sure if that's the right way of saying it? But we've accepted it, just like Ron's uncles Bernie and Benjy…"

"Exactly." Gene nodded, "If it's what they want, far be it for us to deny them." Gene sighed, a somewhat guilty look crossing his face, "I mean… It's the least Jean and I can do…"

"Well…" Felix said hesitantly, continuing when all eyes turned to him, "I've known Ron a few years, and he was pretty troubled with how things used to be… But, honestly? Last time I talked to him, he was pretty happy with the way things're going between you guys now." Felix shrugged with Gene gave him a surprised look, "Oh, I heard about his throwing the 'This is our way…' thing back at you before all this blew up, but, honestly? He's just happy to have his parents back, and promising to do better with his little sister."

"Yeah…" Gene agreed, smiling down at Hana and ruffling her hair briefly, drawing a giggling coo from the toddler.

"Is it on yet?" Joss asked as she hurried back into the room, a liter of soda in each of her hands, one of which she handed to Felix.

"Nah," Felix answered, nodding towards the screen, "Just starting back up!"

Hana again demanded silence, which the adults and teens gave into with chuckles. On screen, Summer had turned back to Shego and was leaning forward, her brow furrowed, "You said that you dealt with it as a villainess, but what about as a heroine?"

"Team Go dealt with two different villains that tried mind control," Shego said with some hesitance, "and I…" She paused, glancing between Kim and Ron, who nodded at her, Ron smiling softly.

"Take your time if you need to…" he murmured, reaching up to her shoulder and giving it a reassuring pat.

Shego nodded, took a deep breath and said softly, "Based on some recent MRI work, it's very possible I suffered an attack by the same villain that went after Kim and her dad." She glanced back at Summer, "It's not a cop out, and I've taken not only responsibility for what I did, paid a_ lot _in reparations and saved the world, but… Considering that in less than a year I went from being who I was to the superthief I became?" She shrugged as Summer gasped softly, obviously shocked by the revelation.

"Honestly, I'm really, really glad that Princess got away from whoever or whatever was doing that to her." Shego sighed out softly, shaking her head, "As best we could gather, I was exposed to it for _years_. It changed who I was, turned me into someone else, and now - thanks to my powers - I'm finally going back in the direction I was going before… But I'm not the same woman I was then, nor am I the woman I was as little as six months ago, so I'm left to pick up the pieces and try to keep my life on the right track."

There was silence for a moment, which was broken by Kim, "I'm just glad that we're able to help you…" Shego looked over at her, and anyone watching could see the thankfulness in the gaze, as well as a complex swirl of emotions that crossed her face.

"Yeah," Ron added with a big, cheesy grin, drawing the camera's attention back to him and away from Shego's raw display, "even if you weren't part of the team, you're our friend, and we always have our friends' backs!"

"Yeah!" Rufus cried, jumping to a standing position on Ron's shoulder and holding two thumbs up, before holding a fist up to Ron for a bump, which the blond returned.

"Thanks, guys…" Shego said softly, shaking her head in amusement at their antics.

"But you_ are _a member of the original Team Possible now…" Summer segued smoothly, "Now designated as Team Possible Alpha, correct?" That drew murmurs of agreement from the team, "Whose idea was it for the designations?"

"Well, Summer," Kim started, but back at the Crooked D, Joss interrupted with a snort of amusement, "It's actually kind of funny…"

"It says I'm th'one that came up with it on th' site!" There were chuckles from Felix and Slim, and a pout from Hana, who whined slightly at the interruption. "Sorry, li'l Han, but I had t'say it!"

On screen, Kim was answering something else that Summer had asked, "Frankly, my world saving started by accident! Mr. Paisley mistyped the URL for Team Impossible, and got me instead… Everything else, as they say, is history! And Joss wanted to join for a while, so when I called her to let her know I was promoting her to a full member, she just… Blurted it out." She shrugged with a bright smile, "And everyone seemed to like it, so we kept it!"

"Well, that's basically what Kim's saying on TV…" Felix commented with a raised eyebrow, making Joss flush with embarrassment. Felix chuckled and moved in to give Joss a solid kiss on the lips, but when they returned their attention back to the screen, it was obvious they'd missed something.

"Well, having been on the receiving end of your skills, Kim, I have to disagree with that claim! I hate to say it, but having that phrase modified like you did seems appropriate…" Summer chuckled, her attention fully on Kim, "After all, you're an_ incredibly _gifted young woman…"

"Yeah…" Kim flushed as brightly as Joss had, glancing between Ron, Rufus and Shego, before turning back bashfully to Summer, "Well, in truth, I_ am _a regular, average girl…" Both Summer and Shego seemed about to speak when Kim held up a finger, as if to forestall their comments, "When it comes to, well, being a girl! Or young woman, or whatever… I mean, aside from villainy and helping with natural disasters and such, I have many of the worries, hopes and such of most girls my age… Well, ones in a stable relationship, anyway!"

That brought about a chuckle from Ron and Shego that seemed a bit too amused, but Kim pushed on "When I was in school, and before I started dating Ron, I worried about typical girl stuff… Yes, like I said, I worried then as I do now about supervillains and stuff, but most of that was on the backburner unless Wade called. I was a cheerleader, I was on a lot of clubs, but so were a few other girls. But that said…"

Kim sighed, glancing down at her lap where she laced her fingers together, "I realized, not too long ago actually, how arrogant it sounded. I honestly believe that anyone, with training, could do a lot of the stuff I do… But, as embarrassing as it is, very few people can do_ all _that I do…" She glanced up, her face troubled, "I don't like believing I'm all that special as compared to most people. It's not how I was raised, but I know I have some… Advantages is the wrong phrase, but I'll go with it? I'm not the smartest from my school, for example, but I was in the top percentile… And I'm able to use my knowledge on the fly, as it were."

"Such as fixing the fly-by-wire system in a high tech helicopter with, I quote, '…chewed out bubble gum, a paper clip and some pencil lead!'" Summer smiled as Kim squirmed slightly, "That's more than a little basic!"

"Yeah…" Kim admitted while Shego snickered softly beside her. She frowned and gave the superpowered woman a half hearted glare, earning an evil smirk from Shego in the process. "Like I said, I can apply a lot of what I learned on the fly like that." She sighed, pursing her lips, "I used to tell other people that pointed these things out to me that it's 'No big!' and say that, well, anybody could do it. Basically, to tell them I'm not special."

She paused for a moment, before sighing softly, "Like I mentioned, I'm not the smartest in my class, nor was I the strongest in the school, the world or even in my own family! There are people faster at running than me, that had more martial arts skill, stuff like that." Kim looked at Summer with a troubled gaze, "But… I'm in the top percentile across the board, in relation to my family or school… And in a few instances, I'm actually in the top percentile in the_ world_…"

"You seem awfully troubled by this, Kim…" Summer said with an honestly concerned gaze, making Kim wince slightly.

"Yeah…" She glanced away from Summer, pursing her lips and raising her clasped hands to her face, tapping her lips with extended index fingers.

"Poor girl's one hell 'f a contradiction in terms…" Slim murmured softly, shaking his head, "I know where she gets alla her worries 'bout what others thinka her…" When the Stoppables, Joss and Felix looked at him, he shrugged, "Momma use't' be like that, an' Annie's_ still _like that a lot… Proud of what they c'n do, but embarrassed at th' fact that they can. 'Specially when they're at th' top of their game." Slim nodded at them, towards the TV, "Kimmie's goin' through what Annie did back 'round the time Kimmmie was 'bout knee high to a grasshopper." The old saying made Joss and Felix laugh in a startled, embarrassed fashion, while the Stoppables laughed in a reminiscent fashion, "She couldn' believe she was special, despite gettin' through her residency as a neurosurgeon b'fore she was twenty six…"

"I knew she went through the program fast…" Jean murmured, her eyes wide, "But that's amazing!"

"An' Kimmie inherited jus' that kinna attitude…" Slim concluded, as, on screen, Kim continued to describe just what Slim had.

With a sigh after several long seconds, Kim turned to Summer and answered a question the older woman had asked while Slim had spoken, "Of course I'm troubled… I don't_ want _to think I'm all that special, or to have others think I am… I want to believe that anyone can, with the right motivation, do what I do, but I know that's not the case with_ everybody_… Not_ entirely_, anyway… But, as much as I don't want to be something special… To so,_ so _many people? I am…" She glanced at Ron, then Shego, smiling, "So, yeah…_ At heart_, I'm still a basic, average girl… With some extraordinary gifts."

"Well said!" Slim said at the same time as Summer did on the screen, making everyone in the room chuckle a bit before Summer continued, "It seems everyone in Team Possible has gifts to one extent or another! Aside from Ron's spectacular display at the end of the Lorwardian Invasion, Shego's known powers and Rufus' unique abilities and Mr. Load's incredible skills at gadgetry…" she turned to the camera, "But there's a lot more to the team, as we found out while interviewing Team Possible Bravo earlier in the week!"

"Aww,_ hell _no, I looked horrible in th' in'erview!" Joss cried, her somewhat rare girlishness bursting forth with a heavy blush. Her reaction drew laughter from the adults in the room and Felix, while Hana giggled and bounced excitedly about at seeing her new friend on the screen…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Her cousin is as capable as Kimberly was at her age." Señor Senior, Sr. said with a fondly reminiscent smile. On their massive TV screen and command center monitor, a still top-of-the-line HenchCo model - with the tracking and hacking backdoors removed by one Wade Load - Joss Possible was seen performing a martial arts kata in her university's gym, before the scene cut to one of her flying through the air with Felix Renton on his wheelchair. They seemed to land at the sight of an explosion, before the screen changed to Felix performing a backflip and landing atop a skating ramp. The scene continued directly from Felix's backflip and the reaction of the skaters on the ramp to Joss throwing several complex martial arts moves against Adrena Lynn.

"Yeah… And I remember that Renton kid, he was alright, and one of the few people I didn't mess with too much… My sisters probably would've, but even when I was being an alpha bitch, I wouldn't go_ that _low… Teasing, snarkiness? That's one thing, but never anything really bad…" Bonnie smirked as Joss was shown jumping and diving around on the recent, free to the public X-Games competition, shaking her head with a giggle, "But, yeah, Joss is a lot like Kim... Well, if a bit more muscular and a_ lot _more chesty…"

"Chesty?" Junior asked with a clueless tone, "What is chesty?"

Triple-S groaned and winced slightly, but Bonnie only smiled more, before reaching up to her t-shirt clad bosom and lifting her own breasts for emphasis, "She's gifted in the boobs department, oh husband of mine!"

"Oh…" Junior said with a blink, staring at Bonnie, then at the screen with dawning comprehension, "Yours are much lovelier, my Bonnie, but I see your point!"

"Thanks, Junior!" Bonnie half squealed, jumping into her husband's lap and watching the screen as Joss began speaking. She glanced over at her father-in-law, a somewhat troubled expression on her face, suddenly compelled to ask, "Do you ever regret dropping evil when I asked you to, Daddy?"

"Only in the slightest, my dear." Triple-S smiled softly, gazing into her eyes, "While I miss the high villainy I dabbled at,_ you _have given my son something no one else was able to, aside from Shego… And she only briefly: a goal in life that he is attaining! That is something I would move heaven and earth to do, and if it required a bored old man to give up one pursuit for another, equally if not_ more _exciting pursuit?" He shrugged, then paused, glancing at Junior. His son stared at him after his firm declaration in something like awe, "It is also a pursuit I think my Sylvia would have wholeheartedly approved of… Sometimes, I think she would have been disappointed that I pursued villainy, but now that I've changed? I think she'd have been happy with the change… And I_ know _she'd have been proud of both your choice in wife and in your choice to follow your wife's heroic dreams… "

Junior, a man of emotions, was normally rather stoic when his mother was mentioned. This time, for some reason, his reaction was different. His eyes watered, but he smiled nonetheless, nodding at the certainty he saw in his father's eyes, "I think you are right, Father…"

"I wish I could have met her…" Bonnie half whispered, her gaze shifting between her husband and father-in-law. On the screen, Joss was telling a story about Kim's experience with horses on the ranch her father owned, earning stifled chuckles from Felix, whom she sat by during the interview.

"She was much like a combination of yourself with a bit of Kimberly's red-headed temper, Bonnie." Triple-S chuckled at the widening of Bonnie's eyes, "Perhaps with a bit of Shego's sharp tongue and razor wit thrown in for good measure."

Bonnie chuckled as well, shaking her head in wonder for a moment before turning back to the screen. Joss had just finished speaking about how she was honored beyond measure to follow her cousin's example in a literal sense, Felix agreeing wholeheartedly. When the scene returned to the studio in Amsterdam, Shego, Ron and Rufus were smiling, Summer was being polite but obviously delighted in the story and Kim was blushing with embarrassment. "Speaking of K and Shego, I wonder if they're going to suffer any backlash after coming out about their relationship?"

"We shall see, non?" Junior murmured, paying attention now that their friends were back on screen, "But I sincerely hope they do not!"

"That sounded like quite the adventure, Kim!" Summer said, laughter in her voice despite her control.

"Honestly, Summer," Kim shrugged with a sheepish smile, "I normally get along with horses, but that time? Saddle sores and I do_ not _get along!" She shrugged, rolling her eyes slightly as Shego added in a comment.

"Well, for what it's worth," Shego's tone was sympathetic, but nonetheless amused, "I had _at least_ as many saddle sores as you, Pumpkin, and I was on one of your uncle's_ real _horses…"

"That helps a little!" Kim said, finally giving into her own laughter, "I mean, it_ was _fun, but the saddle sores are_ not _an experience I want to repeat!"

"I'll have to agree with that!" Shego said with feeling, before sighing slightly and shaking her head, "But Joss is a good kid. She's got all of Kimmie's drive and all the spunk you'd expect from a Montana rancher girl…"

"You seem pretty familiar with 'Montana rancher girls' with the way you said that, Shego." Summer smiled, but it was obvious Shego had been caught slightly off guard with the question, as she winced and smiled ruefully.

"Well, not rancher girls per se?" Shego hedged slightly, her questioning tone hesitant as she obviously ordered her thoughts. A moment later she had a soft, fondly reminiscent smile on her face, "But I knew a woman that was raised around 'em, so it's the next best thing!"

"And who was that, if it's alright to ask?" Summer prodded again, her tone changing to intrigued yet not pushy.

"My first girlfriend." Shego said as if without thinking. She flushed slightly at Summer's raised eyebrow, nodding slightly, "Yes, as in dating girlfriend. We… Ended up being pretty serious for a couple years, actually…"

"Really?" Summer's other eyebrow shot up to join the first, even as Ron and Kim let out soft chuckles at Shego's slight discomfort.

"Yeah, Vivian…" Shego paused, seeming to think, before continuing hesitantly, "She said it was okay to talk about her, so Vivian Porter."

Summer's eyes widened slightly, but her gaze softened at the same time, "The frozen food king, Pop-Pop Porter's daughter and noted robotics expert?"

"Yeah," Shego nodded with increased enthusiasm, her smile widening slightly, "She moved to the Go City suburb of Go City Heights from Billings, Montana a year before my family did; when we moved there, she became one of my first two friends outside of my…" Shego paused, her face flashing a complex series of emotions before continuing with a melancholy expression, "Outside of my older brother before… Before he and I had a falling out…"

"I am still shocked that Miss Shego likes both the men and the women!" Junior said with wide eyes, shaking his head in surprise.

"Why, my son?" Triple-S asked, raising a curious eyebrow, "She is_ very _Western European in her attitude…"

"I think it's because they were involved once, Daddy…" Bonnie said in a tone with a hint of jealousy, but overall pleasure, especially when Junior gave her a reassuring hug, "But, well… She_ is _hot, even_ I _find her attractive, and you both know what I feel about women in_ that _way…"

"With your family it is not a surprise…" Triple-S, who had tried to personally invited her parents and sisters to the wedding, said. He had quickly learned why, exactly, Bonnie was the woman she had been when he'd met her, and had disallowed her sisters and father to ever set foot on_ any _of his properties.

Summer had seemed torn about which of the rather juicy sounding comments to chase, but pushed on with the path she'd already started, "So was she your first serious relationship?"

"No, that…" Shego paused and swallowed, before reaching out to grab one of the bottles of water in front of the team. Taking a few quick swallows, she continued, but there was a definite mistiness to her eyes and strain in her voice when she continued, "That would've been Harlan Little Coyote… I actually met Vivian thanks to Harley, they were best friends… We fell in together_ really _easily." There was a fond smile on her face, but the pain in her eyes was palpable even through the disconnection of being on TV.

"He must have been her first love…" Triple-S sighed out softly, "She has the same emotions on her face I feel when I think of my Sylvia…"

"So…" Bonnie said with wide eyes, looking from Triple-S to the woman on screen, seeing a matching grief between the two, "Oh, no…"

"You were close to him?" Summer asked. Shego nodded, taking a few breaths before opening her mouth to speak.

No words came out, however. She nodded again, took a deep breath and let it out, forcing the words out in a loud whisper, "Yeah… He… He was my Ron, in many ways… He kept the hyper grade school girl, and later the overachieving, risk taking tomboy, from getting into too much trouble. He kept me grounded, sane and centered." Shego coughed and took another drink from the bottle of water. "He was my first in… In a lot of things." She smiled despite the pain writ clearly on her face, a shy, scared expression that made Bonnie's heart break to see it, "My first best friend… My first boyfriend… My… My_ first_, y'know?" She flushed slightly, shrugging at Summer's nod of understanding, "He… He ended up moving to Germany with his family, both his parents were in the Army and got transferred… He joined up as soon as he graduated"

Taking a breath, the super powered woman let it out, shaking her head, "I dated after he left, but it wasn't the same… Then, one night I was helping Vivian with Social Studies, and she was helping me with Bio II, and, well…" She sat back, tilting her head back and staring up into the ceiling that was above her for a moment, "She was an amazing kisser… We stuck together through senior year and into college, but drifted from being_ in _love to loving each other as_ friends_… And then Harley moved back to Go City on the Army's orders…"

Unknown to Shego, a picture of her, Harley and Vivian in Germany was in an inset below her on the screen. Bonnie let out a low whistle, not sure why she was surprised at how attractive the man was, "Wow…"

"He was her first?" Junior asked in a surprised tone, "He was a very handsome man…"

"One can never fault Shego for taste." Triple-S smiled softly, "Then_ or _now, it seems!"

"Got that right, Daddy…" Bonnie agreed, while on screen, Shego sat up and looked at Summer.

"We were engaged within a month…" Again, there was a picture below her, this time showing Harlan kneeling in his dress uniform, and Shego dressed in a beautiful evening gown.

"I hope Ron took your lessons to heart, Daddy…" Bonnie said with a subdued tone, but a smile upon her face, "That's a lot of romance to live up to…"

"He does not have to compete with her past," Triple-S intoned with a smile, "So long as he lives up to himself in the present." Bonnie shook her head in wonder at her father-in-law, but had to agree with his assessment overall. She had met the woman, and the Ron she'd met in Amsterdam had been a lot more on-the-ball than she'd remembered him to be in high school.

"I hate to ask this, Shego," Summer's voice, and the shine in her own eyes, carried the weight of such stark honesty that even among the cynical that watched the show believed her, "But did you ever marry him?"

"We had plans…" Shego smiled, heart wrenching and beatific, yet her voice was steady, seeming to carry a pittance of the sorrow visible on her face, "The plans had to move up, because after he did something for the Army, he got wounded, and, well, a few months later, I was pregnant…" She looked down, at her hands where she clenched them tightly in her lap as tears fell past them. Her voice, when she spoke again, was no longer strong, having an almost broken quality to it, "Samantha would be just over six now… I… I had a miscarriage… And, due to… To some m-miscommunication, H-Harley ended up joining a Spec Ops team, and a f-few months later…" She stopped, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment before opening her eyes sightlessly, "A few months l-later, an A-Army major an-… And chaplain visited Go T-Tower…"

The pale woman bit her lip, shaking her head as if she had been brought forward from that very moment in time to the present, "Harley… Harley d-died protecting hu-hundreds of civilians, a bunch of local and… And international dignitaries… And two platoons of Army and international troops… H-he got a A few days later, Hego and I blew up at each other, he said I seemed to have fallen into evil ways… It was like he was blaming me for what happened! And th-then? He t-told me to le-leave the team…" She looked towards Summer again, before turning to look back at the floor, her grief filled with palpable self loathing, "After that… I-I turned into o-one of the best damn thieves in the world… O-over a stupid argument with my_ b-brother_!"

She seemed about to wail as she dropped her face in her hands. In many ways, despite their obvious friendship, seeing a tearful Kim and Ron immediately latch onto her and comfort her was a surprise… More so, it seemed, was Ron leaning in to whisper into her ear, his left hand clasping hers and his right moving in lazy, gentle circles on her back. The actions obviously kept the woman from completely breaking down, her first sob the very wail it seemed she was ready to unleash… Except it was choked off as soon as Ron's hand began to rub her back and whisper into her ear. Summer, her eyes still shining and a tear trailing down her face, reached for a box of tissues to take one, before handing them to Rufus, who grabbed with a little squeak of, "Thanks!"

Summer nodded at him before turning to the camera, her voice heavy as she said, "We'll… We'll return to the Summer Gale report after these messages…"

"Oh, God…" Bonnie whispered, tears trailing down her own cheek, "She went through that, and was a hero until her fiancé died?" Bonnie sagged somewhat in her seat, shaking her head, "I… I can actually understand about family abandoning someone, but for her own brother to_ yell_ at her after something like_ that_, to_ say _something like that? No_ wonder _she became a villain…"

"There was more to it than that, and she held off better than many,_ many _others would have, my dear…" Triple-S said softly, shaking his head in awe at Shego's resolve.

"Indeed, father…" Junior agreed distractedly. Bonnie glanced at him and nudged him gently as she saw tears in his eyes. He glanced at his wife and drew her into a hug, burying his face in her hair, "I wish I could have been there to offer her hugs of comfort… She is such a dear friend to me, it hurts so to see her hurting like this…"

"I…" Bonnie said, finally understanding exactly what he felt for the former thief… And reconciling her own jealousy as her husband turned to_ her _for comfort over seeing someone he considered a friend in such profound pain. "I understand, Babe…" she said softly as she stroked his hair, "But she has Kim and Ron there, and… I think they're going to announce it soon, see?"

Junior turned back to the television, and sure enough, Shego's right hand was being held tightly in Kim's left, while Ron had an arm about the superpowered woman, his right hand gently massaging Kim's neck as his left was still held in Shego's. "Perhaps they will…" Junior murmured softly, smiling slightly at how… At ease his former instructor, one of the few real friends he'd ever had, seemed to be…

**Author's Notes**

I'm honestly not sure what to say about this chapter, since it speaks for itself… I know it's mostly somewhat of a recap, but I wanted to actually present the interview, at least parts of it, from other people's perspectives. Obviously, its not done, but I'm already over my 10k-word soft limit for the chapter. ^_^' But, for what it's worth, I'm already about half done with the next, so, hopefully…

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work! And remember: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Foreword**

Hey there, everyone! I went a bit over my self-imposed 'soft' 10k word limit this time, but only by about 1.6k words… And at least it's not as bad as some of my overages! XD And sorry for the long delay for this one, Neo and I had some severe interruptions from real life (university classes plus full time work for her, some family-centric stuff for me, plus Valentines day for both of us!), but at least I have C12 written and merely awaiting her having the time to beta it! ^_^ Anyway, enough silly, and onto the review replies!

studyofchaos: thanks for the review and the kind words, I appreciate it! I do try to make things feel more realistic, or at least as much as a world with super science and superpowers can be!

Pharaoh Rutin Tutin: thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked the presentation, and as for Hego, well, as you can see in this chapter, he seems to have come down a bit from his high horse, non? As for Shay's story, well… I'm not sure if it'll be this chapter or a later one, but you'll see just how that seems to affect the world at large in regards to the world's opinion.

Jimmy1201: as always, thanks for the review! When it comes to the 'literary goodness' as you called it, well, I'm_ trying _to make it more approachable, but I'm glad you like it however it comes out! As to the chapter, well, the villain may just have a confrontation with the team… Eventually. ^_^ As to feedback, that'll come, some in this chapter and more in the next couple, as will some of that time to heal you mentioned.

Reviewer that had 'good fic' as his/her name: thanks for the review! Yes, I have been told my writing's, well… Dense, and sometimes hard to get into, but it is_ somewhat _a reflection of the original fiction I like to read. There's also times where it's necessary to give a character background that seems to be needless, but is important for setting a scene, situation or the like. Then again, a lot of the characters for which I end up giving more solid backgrounds I generally intend to reuse, but sometimes, that can fall to the wayside. That said, while I like your review, and indeed, love getting honest critiques, I wish yours wouldn't have been anonymous. I'd love to have more input on your thoughts, as constructive criticism is something I quite honestly crave; unfortunately, you left me with no way to contact you for further feedback. While I'm not asking you to give a review that reveals your name/email in 'public', if you'd like to, feel free to PM me here on FFN (presuming you have an FFN account, but if not, well, c'est la vie, non? ^_^ ), as I'd love to hear your thoughts with less broadly painted strokes than what you presented in your review; after all, knowing that I may have written too much doesn't necessarily mean I know specifically what or where you meant within this fic or the prior in the series. ^_^

And with that done and said… On with the fic!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

The slow moving, swirling fog of waking from a troubled, unrestful sleep suffused the woman's entire being. Slowly, she cracked a gummy eye open and stared sightlessly at the clock on the nightstand. She closed her eye, then reached up and rubbed fitfully at both, trying to dislodge the annoying lack of sight from her vision. After a moment, she stopped and blinked again, accepting the ability to barely register that it was just ten minutes until 3 a.m. With a sigh, she reached out and grabbed the most consistent piece of her clothing for the last sixteen years and donned it without thinking.

With a sigh, she turned her mostly clear eye to the west facing window, barely seeing the waxing crescent moon through the brilliant night skyline of Eastern Amsterdam._ This is a real mess you've gotten yourself into… _Betty Director thought derisively, shaking her head in annoyance._ You should really get some sleep and just record Gale's show!_

But… She couldn't. She wanted to watch, to see how Kim would handle personally revealing what that bitch, Tripe, had tried to reveal… And to make an anonymous comment on the show's blog after the fact. She shook her head in sympathy as the first sounds of the automatic coffee maker starting up echoed throughout the room._ Get up, you fat old bitch!_

She smirked at the thought as she stood and stretched, her tight, athletic body's tendons, her shoulders and a few of her vertebrae popping as she did so. She dropped her hands to her face, before running her fingertips over her body, enjoying the sensation shamelessly._ I wish I had a certain man here to do that… _she thought wistfully as she walked to the apartment's fridge, pulling out some leftovers from the night before that would serve just as well cold as hot.

She looked at the coffee maker and her smirk became a smile as she saw that the coffee was half-done with its brewing cycle. Pulling the carafe out, she poured a full cup's worth into the mug she'd set out the night before, before replacing the carafe and making her way to the love seat in front of the TV. Setting her coffee and food down on the coffee table, she grabbed the remote and turned her TV on, having set it to the appropriate channel the night before. _This should be interesting, if nothing else_…

She watched with rapt attention, steadily munching away on a two serving size bowl of take out chicken cacciatore. One of the things she hated about her extranormal condition was the constant need for food. Unlike Shego, she couldn't supplement with sunlight, and her appetite was positively monstrous. She ate even more than Shego when the superpowered woman was without sunlight, something that had shocked most of her exes. After all, eating enough in her regular meals for, literally, a superheavyweight professional bodybuilder _and_ a fitness competitor, while _still_ snacking on the side would shock anyone!

She snorted as she heard Shego and Kim sharing a few of Kim's old missions against Drakken… Her face once again took on a wistful cast; those days, just a few short years ago, seemed to be so long ago! In the months since the Lorwardians, however, it seemed as if half of the world had gone insane. GJ had been actively involved in keeping down small time villains and a few new borderline _super_villains and almost a dozen potential insurrectionist groups. Some of them had been nearly Marxist, some capitalist and just pushing rebellion to make a buck, and a few deeply religious. They'd been held in check for the longest time by GJ and a few other agencies, but in the wake of the Invasion Event, they must have presumed those same agencies would be inundated and unable to stop them.

Then there was the natural disasters, the post-Lowardian rebuilding and other sundry tasks… It had been potentially overwhelming, and this was to someone that _thrived_ in those situations! Thankfully she'd been able, with some help, to convince the governments of the world to release Lorwardian tech publically, which had helped the rebuilding - and absolutely halted the looming financial crises that had nothing to do with the Lorwardian Invasion Event - to go faster than it had even after the Li'l Diablo fiasco. Just as thankfully, more heroes had come to be more well known; a few of the old regional types had gone semi-national, such as Ms. Sunshine from California - another near victim of Tripe's campaign - and The Lumberjack in the Pacific Northwest, as well as few others that had gone fully national, such as Team Go. A few formerly national or _potentially_ national heroes and groups, such as the Minuteman Rangers and again Team Go, had become multinational and a few others had become fully international… And finally, there'd been a few others that, until Kim and Ron had gone on vacation, hadn't even been in 'the game', such as Felix Renton and Jocelyn Possible and the Upperclassmen…

It was barely enough, especially with some of the villains becoming more… Crime or terrorist oriented. Luckily, somehow, except for her own brother, Team Possible's former rogue's gallery was mostly either retired, staying with the same old formula or even turning good! She was more than happy to have seen Motor Ed on the news being listed as having helped Team Possible recently, along with Hanz DeMenz._ Now, if only we could bring Amy Hall in, either way…_

She shrugged and bit down on an empty fork, glancing down at her empty bowl. She frowned lightly at the lack of food and glanced at her empty coffee cup. Grimacing, she glanced at the TV, which was displaying some annoying fast food ad, and stood. She dropped her bowl into the sink and refilled her coffee, before dragging some milk from the fridge. She pulled a jug of protein powder down from the top of the fridge and went about mixing a shake to supplement her gnawing hunger, listening to her TV for the show. Smiling at the silly, talking insurance lizard with the nice voice and fetching accent, she put her milk and powder up before capping her mixer and shaking the protein powder and milk together. It was almost autonomously done, as she was more interested in hearing what was coming up after the break; she had a strong feeling she kne-…

The beeping of her cell phone, the secret, ultra-private one she'd had Wade Load set up years ago, startled her enough that she almost dropped her shake. Frowning, she flipped the shaker's top open and began to sip at the contents while walking over to pick the offending device up. She smiled as she caught sight of the number, knowing it was a similarly secret and private phone belonging to…

She answered the phone and brought it to her ear, murmuring softly, "Hello?"

"It's safe t' talk, 'Lis'beth…" The southern drawl belonging to one Basil William Du was so startlingly comforting to Betty that she let out a sigh that mingled relief and another, more personal emotion as one.

"Thank God, Basil…" she sighed out, moving back to the loveseat and collapsing on it, "I was worried you'd be found out."

"No way 'n Hell, Lis…" he said just as softly, using the short version of her name that she'd allowed only one person to use in her life… And feeling the goosebumps she'd always felt with that singular person crawling up her back. Shivering, she thought back briefly to her first, unfortunately late husband, who'd died at the hands of a supervillain that had found out just who she, and her old partner in hero work had been just before she joined GJ… She shook her head as Basil spoke again, drawing her back to the present and away from memories of her lost first love… And the only woman she felt she_ could _have fallen for, had life not presented them both with the men they'd married, "Y'all're stuck with me foh th' long haul, y'heah?"

"Your Texan's showing, Basil…" Betty chuckled, "And my disconnect from Global Justice is, as well…"

"Ah don' mind, in eithuh respect, Lis…" Will sighed, "Hones'ly? Th' roughest thin' 'bout alla this is gonna be gettin' through it with your reputation intact…"

"Basil…" Betty sighed, taking several gulps from her shake at the sincerity and determination in his tone, "My reputation_ will _be shot, when this gets ou-…"

"Camille Leon." Will said firmly, his drawl evening out slightly as he spoke, "A wom'n_ you _an' _several_ members of th' General Staff advahsed be held in secure, GJ supervillain lockup. A woman that certain… Impo'tan' people in the 'States got put in a regular prison… Am I right, Lis?"

"Yes." Betty admitted, "Unfortunately, Basil… I did some thinking about everything I found when I woke up… I think, under the circumstances, I may not be able to hold down even the advisory position within GJ. She's cherry picked memories and implanted them into her mind. She's…" She paused, thinking on how to word her worries clearly, "Imagine a person suffering from a strong form of a dissociative disorder, whose personalities are shoved together clumsily, without thought to coherence of personality or thought process. And then imagine that person having just enough memories from the second… False personality for lack of a better term… To overwhelm the first. Basically, at any rate…" She grimaced at the terminology she used, since the situation forced such clumsy mingling of psychological disorders and therapies, "Then, imagine my own and Camille Leon's personalities melded in imperfect perfection, seamlessly… Yet with my knowledge and skills overriding hers slightly, but Leon's general desires and wants overriding mine slightly… And then solidified by a half baked, experimental device so unreliable that DNAmy discarded as not worth perfecting! Now, imagine a mix of those two extremes…"

"Fuck…" Will muttered, the rare, forcefulul curse rolling off of his tongue like a razor on a chalkboard, "So, you're sayin' she could do _more_ than spoof GJ equipm'nt, an' most of our prot'cols?"

"Yes," Betty confirmed, but added a caveat, "Luckily, she didn't get the deep secrets, like this identity or the phones…" She bit her lip, worried about being too forward… But at that moment, watching Kim and Ron hold Shego so comfortingly as the pale woman broke down, she couldn't resist the question pushing against her barriers, "Basil… She doesn't know you're in Amsterdam to… Meet up with me for a strategy session, I'm positive…" Will let out an agreeing grunt, and the auburn haired woman continued softly, "So I'm fairly certain she doesn't know that I asked you to be here, for me, or… Or…" She swallowed, taking a deep breath and pushing herself forward into something that only Will could stop… If he wanted to, "Or with me."

Will was silent for several seconds, as if unsure how to respond. Betty was on pins and needles the whole time, and was worried that she'd said too much, pushed too far. She bit her lip, then let go, opening her mouth to speak, when Will's soft and, to her ears, caring voice finally responded in a low, uncharacteristically subdued tone, "Th' only reason Ah'm not with you now, Lis… Is 'cause Ah don' know where y'all're layin' low… But Ah'd… Ah'd love t'be with ya. With all'a mah heart…"

"Basil…**"** Betty swallowed against a dry throat, taking a swig of her shake to clear her throat, "S-S-H-One-Three."

"Ah'm a two minute walk bein' careful…" he replied simply as, on screen, Summer Gale broke to commercial. He hung up before she could answer, something that she was both thankful for and that filled her with dread.

_Probably for the best, if we're really going through with this… _Betty reasoned, knowing that if she'd have spoken, she'd have tried to reason him out of coming to see her… And he'd have likely done the same. She knew, without a doubt, that when he arrived, their relationship would be changed irrevocably. Even if they didn't make it to the end of the dance they _gad_ been performing for months, the dance furtively _pursued_ and _hinted at_ for years… No, she wouldn't let it all be for naught! They would be together, if she had anything to say about it, and that dance would end wonderfully!

_Because, honestly… _she thought to herself as she stood to answer the specific series of knocks, doorbell rings and an odd, three second scuffing sound from the door,_ I don't want to draw this out any longer. I'm old, tired, and so _damn _lonely… _She glanced at the electronic 'peephole' and saw that, indeed, it was Will… Dressed in a comfortable, knee length jogging jacket as part of his undercover gear, with the hood pulled back just enough to reveal his handsome face._ Moment of truth, you lusty old hag… _she thought to herself and opened the door.

She stood aside as he entered, his attention sweeping from her to around the room, finally settling onto the TV, drawing a smile from his face, "Ah see you're watchin' Shay 'n' Team Poss'ble's interview…"

"Yes." Betty said simply as she watched him take off the hoodie, revealing a tight knit, tight fitting sweater and fitted slacks underneath. She swallowed nervously when she turned away from him and walked back to the loveseat and sat, waving at the space next to her. She took up her shake and slugged the rest of it down as he took his shoes off and came over to sit next to her, relaxing back into the seat with an ease she was almost jealous of. She smiled slightly as he easily draped his arm behind and above her on the seatback, as if he was perfectly comfortable in her presence. It drew a soft laugh from her, which in turn drew his gaze to her. She smiled at him and murmured, "I can see how you held so many ladies' interest before, Basil, even…" Betty gestured vaguely about them, before shrugging and snorting out a laugh, "Though I never understood the whole fiasco with Dr. Hall… I know why from the reports, but you were never too specific about what brought it about?"

"Oh, don' remind me…" he flushed, but smiled fondly, "Ah still don' believe…" He faultered, before chuckling softly and saying, "After she broke up with me… Ah had t' have somethin' in my life… Reg'lar pets didn' do it, an' in mah quest t'get more, well… Like Ah said at th' inquest, Ah ended up settin' Doc Hall on th' path of villainy!" He sighed, shaking his head, "Ah just want'd t'have mah own, livin' Cuddlebuddeh aftah th' most beautiful, lovin', spectacular woman Ah knew at th' time left me high 'n' dry… That's really all there is to it, Lis… I was jus' lonely…"

"You loved her that much?" Betty sighed as Will nodded, a feeling that she was fortunate he may indeed have fallen for her settling over her being. Smiling slightly, she set the shake down on the coffee table and, feeling emboldened by his nonchalant attitude, leaned back and then into him, laying her cheek on his chest to watch the TV with him. Deciding to test the waters a bit more, she murmured softly, "As my first husband always said, Basil, shit happens…" When the man she'd fallen for merely smiled and nodded in agreement, actually giving her a slight squeeze, she felt her comfort level with him jump by several degrees. Her strong love for her dearly departed late husband had, despite the friendship surviving, ended her second marriage due to his own insecurity over that true of a love.

Glancing up at him, she all but whispered when she asked, "I do have a more serious question, though." When he grunted assent, she closed her eye for a moment, "How can you be so… Relaxed… I mean, you've let your accent slip into the same one you had when you first got out of the Army, and you look calm as a monk…" She opened her eye and leaned back to study his face, reaching out to gently stroke her fingertips along his cheek, "How, considering the situation?"

"Ah'm not all_ that _relaxed, Lis…" Will admitted easily, tapping the side of his head, "Up heah… But Ah_ can _force my body t'relax when it's necess'ry, an' my heart's always relaxed when Ah'm with…" He paused, his body tensing slightly before he continued softly, his voice barely a whisper, "When Ah'm with a beautiful woman Ah'd like t'spend a whole lotta the rest a'mah days with, whether as a frien'… A lover…"

He swallowed when he realized just how much he'd already said, his face easy for Betty to read. She guessed that he was wondering if he should stop there, or continue; it seemed that his train of thought went back to his first love, and the regret he mentioned feeling at the inquest about his actions with Dr. Hall, the regret of not saying more than he had the last time he'd spoken those words. When he looked down bashfully, a light blush spreading across his face. Betty opened her mouth, wanting to assure him that whatever he said she was fine with it. But he beat her to it, looking up at her with an earnest expression and almost stumbling over his words like a shy school boy talking to his crush, which endeared him all the more to her, "O-or… Or even a… A whole _hell_uva lot more…"

Betty blinked her eye for a moment as she saw the utter sincerity in his eyes, as that very sincerity washed over her with his voice. It shocked her that, without having dated each other, he was willing to admit to caring, to_ feeling _that much for her, without truly expecting anything in return. With a swallow of her own, she took a breath and murmured, "And how have you come to the conclusion that you'd be interested in… More than a friend and a lover?"

"Lis… Betty…" Will stopped and took a few short, but deep breaths, before reaching out and gently fingering the underside of her eyepatch. Betty swallowed and nodded haltingly, shivering slightly in anxiety that both of her eyes would show more than she wanted of her inner conflict… And trusting that very anxiety wouldn't show through. Basil's smile softened slightly, his eyes shockingly warm despite the deep, onyx color that was so much more expressive than her own deep eyes, then continued in as sincere a tone as he could muster, "Elizabeth, we've known each other foh yeahs, felt this attraction t'each other foh almos' as long as we've known each other… We've each seen th' other at our worst, an' at our best… We've argued, hell, we've all but_ fought _each other han' t' han', ovah silleh things an' ovah serious things… But we've always respected each other, at th' end of the day. Considerin' what's grown b'tween us the last few yeahs, hell, even th' last coupl'a _months_! But above all…"

He held up her eyepatch, making sure she looked at it before tossing it onto the coffee table and shruggin, "We each _trust_ th' other completly. Enough foah you t' trust me t'see both of yoah eyes while we talk 'bout this… Enough foh me t'hold ya now, t'comfort ya… Enough foh you t'let me tell ya how Ah feel 'bout you, an' t'wait 'til Ah could tell ya in mah own way." Betty nodded at him, and his smile brightened significantly, "Only thing that'll change, Ah think, is that it'll cement what we've been hidin' from ourselves foh th' last sev'ral yeahs, and what we've both been dancin' 'round foh t'last few months."

Betty bit her lip, having been worried that he felt a bit differently than she had. Now, hearing that he was, indeed, thinking along the same lines? "I… Think you're right, Basil…" She smiled softly as his arm came down from the loveseat's back to drape across her shoulder and side, drawing a sigh of contentment from her, "And when the time comes? Whatever will be, will be, but I honestly hope it'll be with you at my side… And…" She leaned up and brushed her lips against his, the brief kiss full of promise, but also saying that it was his decision to make it more than it was. It was, truth be told, an action that made even the nigh unflappable Will Du blink in surprise, "Hopefully, with your heart entwined with mine…"

Will's smile, if anything, got brighter, and he returned Betty's simple, heartfelt gesture with one of his own, this time the kiss being far more than a featherlight brushing between their lips. Betty felt as if her insides were lit afire as his tongue brushed her lips… Something she didn't deny either of them, as she opened her lips and allowed their tongues to gently wrestle against each other. The kiss wasn't a thing of romance novels, or epic poems, but it was, to Betty anyway, a sublime moment of shared emotions and a promise of future passion. After several long, indescribable moments, Will broke the kiss and pulled back, gently stroking her cheek with his fingertips, "Ah'd be honored t' be the man yoah heart's twined to, Elizabeth Driector… That's a promise y'can hold me to…"

"Thank you, Basil…" Betty murmured as she leaned up once again and gave him a firmer, if much more brief, peck on the lips. She then pulled back and once again settled her head onto his chest to look at the TV. "Thank you…"

"Thank_ you_, Lis…" he murmured as Summer Gale welcomed the viewers back to her show, "Thank you foh trustin' me with… Well, ev'rthin'…"

"Like Ms. Possible would say, Basil, 'No big!'…" Betty chuckled softly, the sound oozing with the easy smoothness of a silky, smoky bourbon. "Let's watch the show," she half-whispered, "and after it's done, see where tonight, and however long afterwards, takes us…"

"Sounds good t'me, Lis…" Will said as he reached up to stroke his fingers gently through her hair, fingering the edge of her eyepatch questioningly. Receiving a nod from Betty, he carefully removed it to stare into her beautiful onyx eyes, his wavering ever so slightly at the trust the woman he held had just placed in him, "Hell… It sounds_ beyond _good t'me…"

The two held each other's gazes for several long seconds, before turning back to the TV just in time to hear Summer asked Shego if she'd had any relationships since breaking up with Drew…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Leonard Slocomb, recently terminated Head of Mathematics and Executive Professor of Mathematics at Go City University, snorted under his breath as the show took a break, repressing the urge to smirk at the HDTV screen above the bar in Gertrude's, a bar and grill near the GCU campus. Today, he noted, it was loaded with many of GCU's beautiful people; couples, attractive men and positively gorgeous women. He'd made sure to sit close to one corner of the bar, though to his right sat a couple of cuties that divided his attention, surreptitiously of course, between them and the show.

The bar was shockingly quiet, even during the commercial. Everyone wanted to watch the interview with 'Team Possible Alpha'… He shook his head, remembering just the events the superthief - he'd never call the woman a hero, as he'd warned people she'd turn into just what she was ages ago - had described. He knew exactly what'd happened, thanks to his… Connections… And still enjoyed having been proven right. Of course he'd been proven right! She'd been disrespectful to hi-…

"That's so sad…" the cute brunette with boyishly short hair to his right said. She was somewhat familiar to Slocomb, rather tall for woman her likely age, but looked damn good in the simple red t-shirt and black jeans she wore. She was a bit thinner than he preferred but still had an impressive bosom and a shapely ass. She wore several ear piercings and had a pair of rings in her left eyebrow, with a single, surprisingly elegant looking stud in her right nostril. She was definitely worth Slocomb's attention, even if she was shaking her head in sympathy for the worthless bitch that had just been crying her eyes out on national TV, "I knew she wasn't as bad as people always said…"

"Take it from someone who knew her at the time," Slocomb said with a bitter smirk, "She was going to go the way she did no matter what happened, don't let her fool you…"

"And who the hell're you?" the brunette asked, raising an eyebrow in a surprisingly protective fashion for a woman he was certain, considering her likely age, she'd never met.

"I used to be one of her teachers at the university." he nodded towards the screen, upon which an advertisement for beer was playing, "She was disrespectful, always ready to argue and tended to miss a lot of classes…"

"She was a heroine." The brunette shrugged, turning back to her companion, an equally cute girl that seemed a year or two younger. This one had long, wavy blonde hair and her blue eyed gaze held a note of… Annoyance, before turning back to her companion and taking on a soft, loving mien. While she was petite in size, her build was actually rather muscular; not buff, but obviously a gymnast or some such. She also had a fairly small chest, but her hips and the hints to the shape of her legs in her tight slacks were quite enticing.

Both girls were too young to be at the bar under normal circumstances… But if they were there, it was obvious they were GCU students, any of which that was underage could sit at the bar so long as they didn't order alcohol… _Especially_ when there was something like the Team Possible interview on TV. The man wanted to snort in annoyance, but he held off, remembering the glare, and feeling an odd familiarity with the young woman, much like he had with her friend.

He shrugged the familiarity off when he saw the girls hands entwine, shaking his head in annoyance._ Figures… _Slocomb almost chuckled; he was certain beyond any doubt that if he wanted to, he could have seduced either girl, if not both. But before he could contemplate it, a rather sharply settled glass to his left, and two seats down, drew his attention.

He'd seen the woman come in and take a seat close to the TV, he presumed so she could hear it easier. She was positively perfect, in his opinion… She was tall, fit, with wide hips, and while she didn't have a huge bosom, it was above average and very bouncy. She also had a rather… Ditzy sounding voice, almost as bad as the blonde to his right, which to him implied that she'd be an easy mark, if he wanted to go that way tonight. On top of that, she had piercing, ice blue eyes, blonde hair that went to her mid-back and wide, full lips, above the left side of which rested a perfectly sized beauty mark. She was also quite familiar, though the former teacher couldn't place her.

Unlike the cute blonde to his right, however, the woman was laying a dire, almost hateful glare at him. "Don't bother trying to say anything to me about Shay, Slocomb."

"Do I know you?" he asked in an honest, disarming fashion, barely holding in the wince at the use of Shego's real first name. She obviously knew the woman, so he made sure to keep his voice even and his speech just so. After all, despite being a mathematician, he was experienced in public speaking, and used it to his advantage when he needed the… Distracting company of the ladies, as stress relief from time to time. Then he realized that, when speaking to him, her ditziness had fallen away and she sounded cold, almost robotically calculating… He wondered where that had come from, and cocked his head to the side questioningly, "You look familiar…"

"You know that woman Shay was in love with?" the woman smirked, making her glare one of loathing as he nodded, "Guess who I am?" She looked away from him, but continued to speak, this time just loud enough for him to hear, "So keep your mouth shut and your attentions away from me or those two, Slocomb, hear me? Because if that blonde there is who I think she is, and she hears who you are? You'll be out on your ass faster than you can call for your mommy…"

He almost rolled his eyes, but something in the woman's blue eyes made warning bells sound softly in the back of his mind. They began to toll outright when she murmured, "And while I don't know what… I know you had to have had something to do with Shego's depression and the stress leading up to her miscarriage; if you step too far out of line, I'll let a few_ friends _of mine know all about it, and your life expectancy will be measured in minutes."

"Whatever you say, Ms. Porter…" Slocomb murmured, staring at her profile consideringly._ Surrounded by dykes, but at least they're hot ones… _He contemplated speaking to her further, but those warning bells, something he'd long ago decided to listen to, kept tolling. There was something… Certain about the way she'd said that, which made a slight shiver run down his back._ If I could only figure out how to-… _Whatever he was contemplating stopped as the program came back from commercial.

Slocomb almost snorted aloud when he saw the way Kim and Ron were coddling Shego._ Foolish idiots… _he thought,_ She's going to use you up and discard you… _He almost laughed, but kept it in check,_ Trust me on this, Team Possible, dump her as soon as you can, before everything about her comes back to bite you on the ass!_

"Welcome back, everybody…" Summer said, before turning back to Shego. "I never had any idea you'd suffered like that… You have my most sincere condolences…"

"It's the past," Shego said with a sad, but surprisingly strong smile on her face, "But thanks…"

Slocomb almost laughed, wondering just how well she was holding up… If she was really being this emotional and not the evil bitch he'd made her out to be back when she was his student. He did smirk in a knowing, condescending fashion, however, an action which did not go unnoticed by the blonde to his right. He heard her murmur something to her girlfriend, and her girlfriend whisper back, and he regretted leaving one of his favorite teaching aids at home: a discreet hearing amplifier that looked like an MP3 player. Any good teacher knows to use of whatever technological aid he or she can, and being a good teacher, he knew that listening in on student conversations in his domain was only smart teaching! And when he appeared to be among enemies?

"No problem, Shego…" Summer murmured, taking a breath before going on. "How about, for a few, we move away from the heavy emotions to something a bit lighter?"

"You won't get questions answered by stepping away from the big ones, Summer!" Shego managed a fragile sounding laugh, joined in by Ron and Kim.

Summer smiled at her and nodded, "Yes, but I'm sure this is going to be just as probing a question for you…" Shego nodded at her, indicating to Summer to go ahead, "You've been back with the good guys since early June," the reporter said with a gently probing tone, "but from what you said earlier, it seems you had flashes of turning back earlier?"

"Yeah…" Shego replied with a slightly amused expression, "It's… Weird. They didn't come about normally, like some kind of epiphany or anything? But they weren't a steady progression, either…" Summer nodded after a brief pause and the pale woman let out a breath of almost annoyance, "It's hard to explain. The first, well… Despite my feelings for my idiot older brother, I still helped them out when Aviarius stole their powers…" She pursed her lips, "I had them all for a little while, but, honestly…"

She glanced at Kim with a somewhat wistful smile, "I was playing more than anything. I knew Kimmie was getting good, I mean,_ real _good, so I wanted to see just how good she'd become…" She smirked at Kim's almost delighted laugh, "So I set the situation up so she could get the contraption Avarius had used to steal our powers from us… And when Kimmie destroyed it and Drew broke in on the whole sitch, I just bugged out…" She let out a sound somewhere between a titter and a chuckle, blushing slightly, "And let me tell you, she was_ amazing _during those five minutes…

"But that's not the only thing…" Shego turned back to Summer with her comment, her eyes hooded slightly, "I tried to make sure I never did anything against my own code of honor… Killing, intentionally maiming anyone, stealing candy from babies or things like that." She twisted her lips wryly, but the expression was anything but a smile, "Only time I broke the latter was when I had a chip on my head that messed with both my and Kimmie's emotions…"

"That was a mess…" Ron winced, rubbing his face slightly as if in memory.

"What's that, Ron?" Summer asked, making the young man blush.

"Oh, the whole Modulator sitch…" Ron laughed in a nervous manner, drawing an annoyed grunt from Slocomb as he took a large swig of his beer.

_I don't see how someone like him got someone like Possible… _he groused to himself, snorting aloud,_ Just like that goofy looking Army putz Shego was screwing…_

The snort drew a snide glance and sneer from Vivian, making the man raise an eyebrow challengingly. She shook her head in disgust and began to turn back towards the TV, where both Team Possible and Summer were laughing as they discussed the rather boring sounding 'Moodulator Sitch', whatever that was. The man ignored it, hoping to goad the blonde into a conversation. She studiously ignored him, even when the program broke to commercial. He felt fortunate, as he heard a brief, barely audible argument to his right. Using mostly his peripheral vision, something Slocomb had learned to do as a teacher, he smiled slightly as he saw the two having a brief, but intense, spat._ Trouble in paradise, ladies? _he thought with a mental chuckle,_ You _trying_ to make easy pickings for me?_

He thought about pursuing that tangent when movement to his left caught his attention again. Keeping his gaze on his beer while some inane detergent commercial played had been a good idea. If he hadn't, he'd have probably boggled when the tall, broad shouldered man with blue skin and a - was that a daffodil? - hanging from a vine around his neck stepped up and took a seat to Vivian's right.

Slocomb stiffened in annoyed dislike as he realized who it was. He, and probably most of the people in the world, knew who the man was… After all, Dr. Drakken had been instrumental in the Earth's very survival! The fact that he was very tall, and if the suit was any indication, fairly muscular was intimidating… And the former professor_ loathed _the feeling of being intimidated by another human being! Then there was the fact that the hot,_ young _scientist had brightened noticeably at the man's presence… It was as unexpected as her leaning over to kiss the older man. "Hey there, Sweetie!" she chirped, the sound that had enticed him only moments earlier now grating on his nerves… Since it was directed at the tall, broad shouldered man she'd just kissed.

"Hello, Love!" the former, if reports were to be believed, mad scientist chirped just as cheerily.

"Did you manage to catch any of the broadcast?" Vivian asked, and Slocomb could have sworn she was looking at him out of the corner of her eye, despite staring at, apparently, her boyfriend. The former mad scientist removed the deep gray sports coat he wore over a very well tailored suit. Slocomb was surprised at the man's taste; the suit itself was a lighter grey with subtle, attractive black pinstriping, and was made of high quality wool, which actually gave it a more expensive air than silk or cashmere would have. He wore a powder blue shirt that had the subdued shine of silk, though it had a depth to it that said it was another material entirely. The suit, and the dress shirt underneath, was so perfectly cut that it show off the body the older man normally kept hidden, yet didn't make him appear bulky. Overall, the effect of the suit was to make the man seem both rather dapper and approachable at once. This added to Slocomb's already simmering dislike towards the man, as he didn't think the reformed villain should have such a hot woman on his arm.

"Yes, I caught it in the car!" Drakken said, holding up a wrist device that looked like a weird combination of watch and smartphone, "Piped it into your car's entertainment system, since Oliver was driving…" He chuckled as he stared up at the screen, "In fact, I may have waited through the last two and a half minutes of the last section before coming in…"

"Well, that's okay…" Vivian said with a slight, but teasing edge to her tone, "At least I didn't wait_ too _long…"

Drakken placed a hand over his heart, making a show of being hurt physically by her comment, "You wound me, my dear!"

Vivian chuckled, before beginning to speak to him in rapid fire French. Slocomb felt ill at ease when Drakken began to reply in equally fluent French; it was a language the former teacher knew next to nothing about. Had it been Spanish, Latin or even Japanese, he'd have been fine, but he'd never found the French language tolerable. And seeing the increasingly plastic look of Drakken's smile, and the occasional, subtle movement of vines underneath his expensive suit made the professor even more edgy.

He was almost sweating when Drakken echoed a soft, "I see…" in English, though his gaze barely strayed from either Vivian or the TV. They seemed about to go on when the commercial break ended, and everyone's attention seemed to go back to the screen.

"Welcome back!" Summer said with a big smile, before turning back to her guests, "So the whole, as you called it, 'Moodulator sitch' was the start of you and Ron realizing you had feelings for each other beyond friendship?"

"Actually…" Kim said in a drawn out fashion, "That's when we_ knew_… It just took us another several months to come to terms with it…"

"And Drew had a hand in solidifying it…" Shego said with a wistful sigh, "And I had an unintentional hand in hurting Kim…" She glanced at Kim, "A lot… But in the end, it worked for the best…" She grimaced as the red-head opened her mouth to speak, but was saved for a moment by Summer speaking.

"How so?" Summer asked, intrigued almost despite herself.

"Drew had modified a type of robot called a Synthodrone…" Shego informed her, "It had skin that could sweat, body odor, an emotive face and enough artificial intelligence to have actual emotions… All centered around Drew's plan." She took a deep breath, as if centering herself for something painful, "And I was still trying to fight, even after they'd stopped the plan. In the fight, well, I ended up taunting Kimmie…" She glanced at Kim, as if weighing something, "And she ended up saying she hated me, and when she got a solid tag on me, I ended up falling into part of the power source for the radio tower."

Summer seemed shocked as she glanced between Kim and Shego, and the former thief thoughtfully added, "It wouldn't have done much to me, normally, but there_ was _a nice, powerful Rocky Mountain thunderstorm going, and we were both soaked!" She managed to chuckle in a sincere manner, "I got a bit singed, but it was kind of a good thing, in the end…"

"That would have been during the Li'l Diablos…" Kim said, pouting slightly at being shut out of the description, but taking it well otherwise. On the screen, seeming to float above their images at the bottom left of the screen, the Li'l Diablo robots few through the air, before shrinking and dropping from the sky. Just afterwards, it showed a scene of Ron slamming a door on Drakken and a rather frizzy, smoking or steaming Shego.

"I knew what was happening at Bueno Nacho was five hundred miles of bad road!" Ron's voice was strident, but unlike his normal demeanor, surprisingly well controlled.

Slocomb shook his head, barely refraining from making a comment by sipping at his beer._ I wonder how Possible can stand someone so… _He searched his mind for the right word, and despite his own prodigious vocabulary, could only come up with one word,_ Annoying?_

"Yeah," Kim half chuckled, "Ron figured it all out before even Wade could…" She leaned over in front of Shego and gave him a quick kiss on the lips, "That's why he's my Potential Boy!"

"Break it up you two!" Shego groused in a good natured way, "Save that for later…" Ron looked about to say something, but a stifling sound from Rufus, who was chuckling himself, stopped him.

_You're transparent to me, Shego… _Slocomb thought as he watched Shego push Ron in the manner that one would a significant other, much like she had her own late fiancé at one point in time,_ But only I seem to be able to see it… _His rather self-satisfied thought drew a snort of amusement before he could control it. His snort drew some seemingly agreeing reactions from other patrons, although if they'd have known what he was thinking, they'd have probably been rather… Peeved.

"I'll admit I… Overreacted a bit to what'd happened." Kim said after a moment of thought, "You see, that was after the whole thing with Aviarius stealing Team Go's powers. By that time, Shego and my fights were more… Intense sparring matches?" She glanced at Shego questioningly, and the guilty looking woman nodded, her gaze sullen, "So I'd felt betrayed…" She sighed as she glanced back at Summer, her face betraying some guilt, "I didn't know she was kept in the dark until the last minute… The next school year, when she was affected by a modified mad science invention, I apologized to her… At the time, she wasn't in her right state of mind and accepted it, but I was never sur-…"

"I still meant it, even after I went back to myself, Pumpkin…" Shego all but whispered, "Honestly… Your reaction to what Drew did, well… It made me do a lot of thinking… And the damage the power source did to my nervous system, although not much more powerful than a stun gun, was enough for my powers to start… Fixing the problem we mentioned earlier." She tapped the side of her head then shrugged, "I'll be the first to admit I was mad that you'd taken things so far, but… I understood, believe me…" She shook her head, "We've moved on though, so it's all good."

"And that's what led Ron to ask me out…" Kim said, then held up her hand, "And here we are, a year and five months later…" She tittered softly as Summer gave the ring a positive yet appraising view, "He asked me to marry him the night after the Lorwardians…"

"That's beautiful!" Summer smiled as Kim lowered her hand, "And it's good to hear that you three…" Rufus let out a squeaky cough, drawing a delighted chuckle from Summer, "Sorry, Rufus, you_ four _have managed to patch things up and become such good friends…" At a raised eyebrow from Shego, she chuckled, "Well, for one, you wouldn't be on Team Possible if you hadn't!"

"True, true…" Shego nodded, while Ron, Kim and Rufus chuckled at her. Slocomb grimaced at the teen, his long understanding of body language from being a teacher, as well as Shego's proclivities, telling him there was more than just friendship between the two women. "And I guess that's for the best, in the long run…"

"So, to touch back on the Moodulators, you called them?" All of the guests winced at that, but awaited her question, "You were both affected, did that push_ you _towards any romantic leanings, Shego?"

"Um, yeah…" Shego's tone was sarcastic, and she winced at it, "Sorry, but that's still kind of a tender subject…" Before Summer could give her an out, however, Shego chuckled, "It got me to thinking about Drew, actually… And yes, that vine thing at the UN was his way of asking me out without asking me out…" Kim giggled while both and Ron and Rufus laughed, though they looked a little ill at ease for a moment. Shego caught that and pounced with a smirk, "Hey, don't look like that, Sport! He's far from ugly, and rather buff under the lab coat!"

"I'll take your word for it?" Ron hedged, drawing more giggles from an entirely too amused Kim, as well as some chuckles from patrons of the bar, many of which were looking to Slocomb's left. The former teacher couldn't help but glance over to see Vivian nodding in agreement and gazing lovingly at Drakken, while Drakken all but preened as several other patrons looked over at the couple.

"Anyway, yeah, we tried dating after the whole Lorwardian thing…" She shook her head, "Unfortunately… We determined it felt like trying to date an uncle in my case, or a niece in his…" Shego laughed, a surprisingly pure sound, and Slocomb found himself annoyed at the brightness of the smile she wore, "But he's kinda become just that to me, honestly."

"That's good to hear…" Summer nodded sagely, "So from a failed romance to a best friendship?"

"You could say that…" Shego glanced at the camera with that shark-like smirk, "A good enough friend that I kinda, sorta set him up with an old friend of mine, Vivian…"

"Did that have anything to do with Porter, Lipsky and Load, L.L.C. staring up?" Summer probed as soon as Shego had finished her comment. On the screen, a picture from a recent issue of Forbes flashed up in the bottom center of the screen. The cover had a picture of the former Professor Dementor standing in the center, while Tanaka Yamada, a former Japanese supervillain and Drakken stood abreast of him to his left and right. Below Drakken on the cover was an inset picture showing himself, Vivian Porter and Wade Load. The tagline underneath it all was, 'Mad Science Goes Mainstream?', and had been one of Forbes best selling issues. Slocomb went for a sip of his beer and realized it was empty. He signaled the bartender for another, who gave him a fresh glass, knowing the former teacher had a tab.

"They actually formed the partnership during their first date, to my understanding…" Shego nodded, "Drew had been working on some things with Wade, trying to improve his synthodrone for police, security and military training purposes… When he mentioned it to Vivian, she jumped in with both feet." The pale woman shook her head in a fond manner, "Honestly, I think that did more to solidify their relationship than the date proper… They're both geniuses, and both love technology almost as much as they love each other!"

"And what about you, Shego?" Summer asked in the deadpan fashion of an interviewer merely asking a question. Slocomb, again relying on her body language, saw it for what it was: somehow, she was coming to the point of the whole interview with that single question… As Shego glanced between Ron and Kim, her gaze questioning, he felt a rage bubbling up that he almost couldn't bite back, because that meant-…

"Want one of us to answer that, Sheegs?" Ron offered, his soothing voice cutting off Slocomb's gibbering thoughts as effectively as a knife. The former teacher glowered as the blond reached out to take Shego's other hand, which is when Slocomb realized Shego had been holding Kim's hand the whole time.

"I've got it, Ronnie…" She took a deep breath and turned to Summer, a shy, worried expression on her face. She gripped Kim's hand a little harder, and the red-head reached over to cover Shego's right hand with her own, a care-filled smile on her face, "I have someone…" She glanced shyly over at Ron, "More than one someone, really…" Turning back to Summer once again, she said softly, "When we started hanging out in Munich, like I'd said, we became really close as friends… On the one mission, that involved the Army and Global Justice?" Summer nodded, having covered that earlier in the interview, "Well… After I got hurt, well… We… Kinda realized that we'd gone beyond feelings of friendship. Between all three of us…"

"Wha-…" Summer gasped, her tone that of honest surprise. Shego's comment also drew mixed reactions from around Slocomb. The bartender, a man in his mid-thirties, seemed nonplussed but oddly pleased, while to Slocomb's right, twin giggles told him the girls had either expected this, or were fully in support of it. He heard a few gasps from elsewhere in the bar, as well as disapproving but otherwise indifferent comments from people.

To his left, he heard Vivian mutter a pleased, "I'll be damned, she did it…"

Slocomb almost choked out a protest when Drakken cooed, "Go, Shego! You're all that and a box of Cracker Jacks!"

Behind him, from several jocks sitting at one of the round tables near the bar, he heard a woman mutter, "Lucky bastard…" He glanced back and saw that the woman was the quarterback for GCU's football team, and she wore an expression that was a jumble of good-natured jealousy, appreciation and curiosity. Her friends seemed to agree with her, though there was some ribbing all about over the announcement, especially from a woman that was obviously a cheerleader that was all but hanging off of the quarterback's right arm.

Across the bar was a man a little older than Slocomb himself, who let out a sigh and shook his head, "Kids these days…"

The man's apparent wife slapped him softly on the shoulder, "Relax, honey… I think it's beautiful."

Overall, from what Slocomb could tell, most people were in outright support of it… And those that weren't, were indifferent or accepting at the least. On the screen, Summer had regained her composure. "I'm sorry for my reaction," She said with a light blush, "But this is… Rather unexpected."

"I'm sure!" Kim said brightly, a proud, happy smile on her face, "To be honest, Shego and I figured it out first, we were kind of leaning that way before the mission… But after the mission? I knew, when she was hurt, that I'd fallen for her and that I still loved Ron every bit as much as I have since before we started dating…"

"And that could have been a problem…" Shego added, pausing as she confronted something that troubled her. "You see, it was… Easier… To admit my feelings for Kimmie?" Shego's hesitant, questioning tone was nonetheless strong as she spoke. Her face spoke volumes of her own feelings, but also the worry she probably felt at admitting what was going on between the three of them. Slocomb saw her lips move slightly, and while he couldn't make anything out, he knew she was debating something in her mind, "Honestly… I was really hesitant to admit how I felt about Ron… Not because I feel anything_ less_, mind you…" She glanced over at Ron, her worry more obvious, "But because I… I was worried I was going to use him…"

"Use him how?" Summer asked, her gaze hooded as if either in judgment or concern of her own.

"That I'd use him to replace Harley…" Shay whispered, turning back to Summer, tears shimmering in her eyes, but not falling. "But, well… I know, without any doubt, that's not the case. I… I've come to love him as much as I love Kimmie…"

"And I love Shego as much as I do KP." Ron added firmly, his big hand squeezing Shego's as if in reassurance.

"Not to doubt your feelings," Summer said in a reassuring tone, "But how does this work? I think many people have at least an idea how a threesome works, but a…" She paused, searching for a word, "A trio?"

"Pretty much like a couple." Shego started, then paused to glance between Ron and Kim with a deep blush on her face.

"But between the three of us." Ron smirked slightly, then blushing as he added, "And, as for a threesome, well…"

"We've talked about how_ that _will work out for_ us _when the time comes, Summer…" Kim said with a chuckle at Ron's discomfort, "But haven't really… Planned anything, or done anything for that matter beyond just… Feeling things out, so far."

"Hey, Bud," the bartender asked in concern, his soft, deep voice startling Slocomb out of his rage.

The former teacher glanced down to see he'd been shaking badly enough to spill his nearly full glass on the bar. "Um, yeah…" he shrugged, grabbing a napkin and wiping at the mess, "I was in Boise when the Diablos attacked, just having a bit of a flashback."

"Mmm, hmmm…" Vivian murmured, drawing Slocomb's eye. He kept his rage out of his gaze, because he was honestly intimidated by the sheer height and build of Drakken, but raised an eyebrow. Both seemed to ignore him, which was fine by him. He'd just turned back to his beer when a big hand came down on his shoulder. He was spun around in his seat and confronted the chest of a positively huge man, as far as muscles went. While shorter than Go City's resident superhero, Hego, his muscles seemed every bit as large to Slocomb, "What the hell?" he objected to his mishandling, glancing up to see the face of a man that could easily be considered a pretty boy, even with the obvious scars from one… Or perhaps _three_ too many fights.

"Leonard Slocomb?" the man asked in a soft tenor, startling the former professor, who had expected a voice as deep or deeper than his, and far more resonant.

"Who's askin'?" Leonard sneered; he may no longer be a teacher, but the campus security would be more than willing to deal with the jackoff in time if he made the mistake of throwing a punch. Besides, it was all part of hi-…

"That's him, Carol!" the cute, short haired brunette that had been sitting to Slocomb's right chuckled, drawing a sharp look from the former teacher.

"Thanks, sis!" the man, Carol, said, but was interrupted by the bartender.

"That's Leonard Slocomb?" the quarterback asked in shock, obviously not having recognized the man in casual clothing.

"Yep!" the blonde next to the brunette chirped, her blue eyes shining in what Slocomb could only assume to be delight at the prospect of him getting beaten up, "He's a real frikkin' bag of pricks!"

The off color, not-quite-cursing didn't seem at all out of place with the blonde, even if one knew what she meant in more colorful language… Such as what the now scowling quarterback said, "Yeah, he is a bag of dicks… He tried to get my sister suspended for missing classes for pre-excused cancer surgeries…"

"Definitely got the right man!" Carol growled softly, before shifting his hand from Slocomb's shoulder to his lapel and yanking him to his feet, "You almost failed a damn good friend of mine for missing a class…" Slocomb opened his mouth, a sneer on his lips, before the man drew him close. When it came to non-supervillains, Slocomb was a very hard man to intimidate, but the dark storm in the man's eyes made a bead of sweat trail down his forehead, "Because he had to bury his father! And now that you're not a teacher…"

"Don't make me call the cops, guys!" the bartender warned, but without any real fire, as if he were indifferent to the fate of the apparently well known teacher.

Slocomb shot the man a dark look, but then turned back to the huge man holding him by the shirt, "He should have thought about his academic career instead of worthless emotive tripe!" Slocomb snapped out, seeming not to care at the big man's even darker glare at his response, "When you're in college, it prepares you for the_ real _world, where you can't worry about petty familial issues, and furthermo-…"

"Excuse me, young man…" Drakken said in a tone that he hadn't used for several months. The bombastic tone drew the attention of several people from around them, including Carol, "Would you like some assistance taking this… Garbage out?"

"You can't do this!" Slocomb suddenly yelled, "I may have been fired, but I'm_ respected _in this city!"

"I ain't seein' nothin'…" the older man across from Slocomb, who had seemed mildly bothered by Kim, Ron and Shego's admission earlier, called out… While pulling a badge on a chain from under his dress shirt that read Go County Sheriff's Deputy, "Anyone else seein' anythin'?" Being greeted by a chorus of negative answers, he smirked and leaned into the bar slightly, "Give 'im one for me, got it?"

"With pleasure…" Drakken and Carol muttered, Drakken adding, "You remind me of one of my teachers from MIST… I'm going to enjoy myself…"

"I can get your pardon revoked, Drakken!" Slocomb hissed, just loud enough for those very close by to hear.

"No, you can't…" Vivian finally spoke, just as quietly, while still watching the advertisement that had come on during the confrontation, "You see, you're known as the man that tried to get both Shego, who is still loved here, and Kim Possible, who is an internationally known hero, to drop out of school…" She turned and smirked, "Besides, I'm sure everyone else here saw that Drew was sitting right next to his lovely fiancée all evening long…"

Slocomb wanted to snicker at the fortuitous turn of events. After all, there were some things he wanted to accomplish… And if he could make it seem that several people were gunning for him? So much the better… However, when he felt Drakken's vines slither about him and not only constrict his arms in place, but gag him as effectively as duct tape, he began to worry.

Especially when the big, blue man leaned in to whisper in a deadly voice, "I know some of the things you did to Shego when she was in college, Mr. Slocomb…" There was an almost mad glint in Drakken's eye when the former teacher looked at him, "And I'm her honorary uncle, meaning I consider her family…"

Slocomb realized, with his ability to talk cut off, me may very well be in over his head, and had no way out… He began to struggle, but stopped, slumping in defeat when the table full of jocks that had been behind him, and another table of rather tough looking students from across the bar stood, troublingly evil smirks on their faces.

When they got outside, Drakken easily carried him over to the side of the restaurant. The former mad scientist dropped him unceremoniously onto the pavement and then… His vines spread out in a manner almost protective of the disgraced professor, and the Carol character stood back to back with Drakken, his face giving the impression that everyone else should calm down for a few moments. "What's going on?"

"What's going on, my dear_ former _professor, is that I'm saving your ass…" Drakken muttered, leaning forward and narrowing his eyes, "But not for_ your _sake, but the sake of these fine young men and women here." Slocomb flinched at that declaration, glancing around at the… Very ugly glares he was receiving, "You see, when someone spotted you at the bar, here, they called in buddies. Every single person out here and most of those inside have a beef with you, and how you've treated friends, relatives, lovers, fiancés and fiancées, husbands,_ heroes_, etcetera…" The former professor opened his mouth to speak when Drakken gave a nearly unhinged chuckle, "Quite frankly, I'd have rather left you to rot in their care, but I don't want to see_ them _harmed by harming_ you_. Not to mention, you've been somewhat of a boon to evil everywhere, since you have, time and again, pulled heroes going to school here into your classes and driven almost two thirds of them to give up hero work! That's actually almost ten percent of the hero community, you should know…"

"And since Drew's on the side of angels now," another voice said, a vaguely familiar voice that drew everyone's attention, "you'd best leave before I talk him into coming inside to have a drink."

The declaration followed by another, somewhat subdued but just as familiar voice, "And while I'm in agreement with everyone else," the voice of Hego half-growled, "I think we'll give you a chance to clear out of the area before things turn ugly!"

"Hello, Mego, Hego." Drakken said, smirking at two of Go City's resident heroes. Several people among the group around them muttered about the sudden appearance, a few grumbled in annoyance and a few even seemed pleased to see a pair of 'real, live heroes' in addition to a world savior. "I take it you got a call about Mr. Slocomb being here and getting the evil eye?"

"Yes," Mego said offhandedly, "But, frankly, I was almost hoping to see him get curb stomped."

"What?" Slocomb objected loudly, "But you'r-…"

"That's our sister you screwed over, Slocomb!" Hego hissed, his blue glow surrounding his huge frame, "Now, I'm going to give you a minute count to get the_ fuck _out of here, or I'm dragging Drew and Mego into the restaurant, and letting whatever happens, happen!"

Mego glanced at his older brother in surprise, before smirking down at the now cowering man. "You heard the man!" Mego quipped, "Go on, get going!"

"You worthless bastards!" Slocomb yelled as he got up, but made sure to do so while making his way over to his car, "_This _is why you can't trust heroes! Threatening someone because their sister - who I remind everyone was an evil bitch for_ years _- couldn't handle simple math cours-…"

"We said_ move it_!" Hego, Mego, Drew and Carol hollered, their faces contorted in barely controlled anger.

"Fine…" Slocomb sneered, "But you haven't heard the last of_ me_!" With that, he unlocked the door to his car with the keyfob and settled himself in. "I have an interview tomorrow, and I'm going to make sure the world hears about this!"

With that, Leonard Slocomb pulled out of the parking space he was in, ignoring the taunts and jeers of the surrounding students, men and women that should know better…

_Of course, _the man smirked as he pulled onto the street,_ I could give a damn about all of them… I have bigger fish to fry, as it were!_

**Author's Notes**

Well, a bit of drama up front… But, otherwise, a continuation of the last chapter… Next chapter's first section will be the conclusion of this, but it'll definitely up the drama factor, I think! Hope all of you reading it enjoyed it, and hope it wasn't too boring! Until next chapter (which _should_ be up next Friday, presuming RL doesn't kick myself or Neo in the head!)…

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work! And remember: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Foreword**

A li'l bigger than I planned, but I've also been delayed by a week (I did promise one to two week update times when time allowed, after all!), so I figured I'd give a li'l extra to everyone. That said, on to the review replies!

Pharaoh Rutin Tutin: "Petty power corrupts out of all proportion to actual power." Indeed, indeed... As to understanding Slocomb's mindset, well, I've dealt with people similar to him, as far as general attitude, in RL... It's a pain! Glad to see you're still enjoying the fic, and hope you continue to do so!

good fic: thanks for the review, and I understand where you're coming from. I know the build up and interpersonal stuff can be boring, but, unfortunately, I'm someone that prefers reading - and writing, of course - more character driven fiction. Unfortunately, my biggest failing is that I sometimes get lost in the details. Hope you continue to enjoy, and there will be some action next chapter, so stay tuned!

Mystra32: Thanks for the review! As to who the main bad guy is, well... Time will tell... Time will tell... That said, a well done KiGo can be easily believable, there are, in my opinion, too many that throw them together. That can be said about all pairings that deviate from canon (as in, Ron and Kim togetehr in sophomore or earlier junior year, etc...). Nonetheless, I like the thought of a threesome between the three. It just, to me, makes sense.

DragonLord19D: thanks for the review! As to the main villain... Maybe... But maybe not? As I told Mystra32... Time will tell...

And now... The fic!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Basil William Du glanced about him as he woke, taking in his surroundings. He smiled as he felt the steady, warm breath of his bedmate wash over his neck and chest. He glanced over at Elisabeth Director and shook his head slightly; in sleep, without the stress of her job and the life he knew was incredibly lonely, she looked positively angelic. She wore a slight but content smile, and her breathing was slow, deep and rhythmic. Smiling in return, he carefully stretched in preparation of extricating himself from the tangle of arms and legs they'd become.

It took a minute, but he was finally able to sit up the regular size bed of the safehouse, S-S-H-One-Three, continuing his earlier, careful stretch so as not to wake her. He glanced back at the woman, his former superior, his… Friend… And now lover, his soft smile spreading a bit. He blinked when her face tensed slightly and she reached out, pawing at the pillow he'd used, searching for him even in her sleep. Thinking quickly, he leaned down and grabbed the polo t-shirt he'd worn the night before from the floor and brought it over, placing it in her hands. She quickly drew it and the pillow in close to her bosom, inhaling deeply and relaxing, her smile widening while she let out a soft, moaning sigh of contentment.

Will stood carefully and gathered his clothing, before walking over to the bathroom. He smiled as he saw she'd packed an extra toothbrush, as if… _She'd been hopin' Ah'd come ovuh las' nahght…_ he concluded, which startled a soft chuckle from him. Shaking his head, he perused her toiletries, pleased to see that she had a tendency of using gender neutral scents and washes… Much like he and his first love had.

He shook his head as he started the shower, glancing back out into the bedroom, drinking in the sight of Betty's nude form like a fine wine. He absently reached out and felt the water, pleased with the temperature, and got in, closing the curtain and his view of Betty. That was alright, though, because he had memories that were almost as good. Memories cintact, motion, growls and grunts… The almost savage first intercourse between them; it had been rough, intense, as if neither of them had need of the gentility of the love they'd admitted to each other.

Their second, and surprisingly third, bout, however, had been a different animal altogether. Slow, sensual… Loving… To his mind, the kind of intercourse that movies could only dream of portraying. He chuckled softly at his own poetic thoughts on the situation, hoping that it was only the tip of the iceberg between them, despite their worries. Both of them had, of course, had lovers, and were experienced. He, having been one of the rare - in his opinion, at any rate - 'pretty boys' in high school and college that cared as much for his lovers' pleasure as his own, and she being one who sought quality over quantity. As irony would have it, they also shared the fact that, with each other, they'd found only the second person they both knew they _truly_ loved… Something that, as hesitant as they were to say it so early in their relationship, they'd both admitted to each other the prior night.

If he were honest with himself, he was scared, if not outright terrified. The next week or so could prove their undoing, or lead to their deaths. That was the main reason that he absolutely _hated_ leaving her like this… But he had things to do, preparations to make, and didn't dare dally… Not if they and their allies were to survive the coming storm…

Finishing his shower with the efficiency he was known for, he dressed, pulling his stylish hoodie on over his bare chest, quite fine with leaving his shirt with Betty. He made his way over to her phone, picking it up and going to the kitchen. He set the phone on the counter and, as quickly and quietly as he could, prepared breakfast for her. He mixed a protein shake, before cutting up three oranges and apples and peeling eight hard boiled eggs, placing all of his preparations on a platter before putting it back in the fridge. Smiling at his work, he set up a calendar event on her phone, explaining why he was gone and when he'd be back, before setting it for a half hour later.

Padding back into the room, he plugged the phone back into its charging cord and set it on the nightstand next to the bed. He then leaned down and kissed her ever-so-gently on the lips, whispering, "Ah love you, 'Lis…"

"L've you too, Bas'l…" she murmured, mostly asleep, before snuggling the pillow and his shirt all the closer to her.

Standing and forcing a serious cast to his face, Will let out a soft sigh, before turning towards the door to the safehouse. He quickly made his way back to his apartment, changed, and made his way towards the nearest travel tube. It would deposit him near another GJ facility, but that was not his destination… No, his destination was a crowded, noisy street nearby, one with minimal GJ surveillance, where he felt relatively safe making a few calls about a meeting on Sunday…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Wait…" Ron muttered in surprise into his wrist Kimmunicator, staring at the person on the other end of the call, "You're saying Hego's come around a bit?"

"More than a bit!" Jesse, one of the Wegos, said enthusiastically. He was sitting at the conference table in Go Tower, fidgeting slightly as they talked about his eldest sibling, so his brother James continued, both of them going back and forth, "He's actually… A lot like…" They glanced at each other and chuckled as Ron rolled his eyes, "He used to be!"

"I'm surprised…" Kim said with a cool tone, pursing her lips, "No offense, but the last time I met him…"

"I know," a new voice chimed in, chuckling, "Sandy said she was at the tower getting a couple of my medical records when you came back in with him!" Jody 'Mego' Gottlieb shook his head as he came on screen, "You really threatened to rip his nuts off if he didn't grow up?"

"Yeah," Kim half growled, half sighed, "he was being a complete and total jerk! He actually considered calling the cops on _me_ because I took down a man pointing a knife at me, to quote," She dropped into a harsh, insultingly mocking impression of the Go City hero, "'Harder than a hero needs to!'" The red-head growled as she continued, "And he only came on scene after Ron and I had things mostly calmed down!"

"We're sorry he was like that," Jesse chimed in, James actually keeping quiet as he glowered at the memory himself, "but honestly? He seems to have grown up in the last few weeks…"

James nodded, the reason for his glower being made obvious when he spoke, "Yeah, his shrink put him on some pills of some kind, and it's actually helped… He's also doing a _lot_ of talking to him, apparently…"

"Really?" Kim blinked in shock, having never expected the proud leader of Team Go to take such a step. After a moment, her face fell slightly and she shook her head, "I'm sorry, guys, but I don't see how that-…"

"He's been going since that argument, Kim." Sandy Gottlieb, Jody's wife, said as she set a baby carrier down on the table next to Jody, glancing up at the huge monitor. She took a seat close to him before leaning in and planting a soft kiss on his cheek, before turning her attention to the heroes. She sighed softly as Jody put his arm around her… Before elbowing him hard in the gut, "And according to my husband, who wasn't _supposed_ to go out on hero duty last night, Hego's acting like he did before Shay went off to college. He cursed once, dropping an f-bomb on Leonard Slocomb because the asshole was causing problems at Gertrude's," the declaration caught Kim and Ron off guard, both of whom blinked in surprise, "And told him to leave the premises or he'd drag Mego and Dr. Lipsky inside and leave Slocomb to get the ever living shit beat out of him by a bunch of jocks that had it out for him."

"Really?" Ron half squeaked, not wanting to believe her and half worried Kim would disagree quite vehemently, considering her last interactions with Hego… And the actions he'd done in regards to the woman they'd come to love.

"Yeah." Sandy nodded, glancing at the other adult members of the Gottlieb family. They all glanced at each other and nodded, before Sandy turned back to Kim and Ron. "Speaking of which, since I'm sure no one's asked yet," a chorus of nervous chuckles answered her, making her cover her eyes with her hands, "I'm surrounded by cowards…" With a sigh at Kim's sudden chuckle, she dropped her hand and said, "Is Shay around?"

"No, she went out with Rufus to get a cup of coffee, but she seemed pretty down…" Ron supplied, then winced when Kim slapped his shoulder, "What?"

"She went to a _coffeeshop_, not a _coffee_ shop." Kim chuckled, making sure to emphasize the separation of the words, "Here in The Netherlands, when it's spelled out on a sign or on paper, Ron, it's made one word, to let anyone looking know that it's a place you can get pot. As two words, it just means, well, a coffee shop, like Sundollars or Canada's Jim Huston's."

"Oh…" Ron said in a drawn out manner, before he snapped his fingers and his eyes went wide, "Oh, I get it…" He grimaced slightly, "But yeah, she seemed pretty down for some reason this morning…"

"She got a call this morning, Ron…" Kim muttered, a dark shadow descending across her face, "I think it was… Hego's name is Greg, right?" Nods from the Gottliebs answered her, and she nodded in return, glancing at Ron, "I was in the bathroom, and heard her harshing on him, _really_ emphasizing his name, so…"

"That's one of the reasons I…" Jody started, then paused and glanced around at his younger siblings and wife, "Er, _we_ called, actually; his shrink wanted him to try and 'clear the air' between himself and Shay… In baby steps, bit the call us the start. And I guess this just shows he's a lot like he was before all that happened back in '02…" He paused, pursing his lips, "I guess it also explains why he went to see his shrink today." The purple haired hero sighed, shaking his head and grimacing at their timing, "On top of it, today's…" At his pause, everyone on his side of the conversation half glared at him, although the Wegos seemed as unwilling to speak as he did, and he glanced back at the screen, "Um, I'm sure she hasn't mentioned it, but, well…"

Sandy sighed as the violet eyed hero went silent, glancing around as if half expecting to see Shego jump out of the shadows to beat him into silence. His wife elbowed him in the gut again before smiling and leaning towards the Go Tower communications system, "She turned twenty-eight today, guys…"

"Today's Shay's birthday?" Kim half screeched, both her and Ron's eyes widening in a mix of surprise, guilt and worry.

"Yeah." Jody blushed, "We thought about calling you guys last night, but with the interview being last night as well-… Er, I guess it'd be early this morning for you guys?" Kim and Ron nodded, "Yeah, we felt it'd be best to let you guys sleep in a bit, but wanted to get ahold of you before the day's out over in Europe."

"That explains why you guys're up so early, then?" Ron snickered, drawing a stifling look from Kim.

"Nah!" the Wegos responded as one, Jesse finishing, "We have to be at school in a half hour."

"And we figured we'd call before I have to get to work." Jody concluded, glancing over at his wife, "Sandy's gonna stick around, she wanted to talk to Shay about a few things…"

"But that can wait 'til later." Sandy said firmly, "And _you_, love of my life, have to get to work!"

That siad, the two teens and the collected Gottliebs said their goodbyes, then turned to each other questioningly, "What should we get her?"

"Well…" Ron said as he looked around, his face lighting up when he spied the pale woman's music player, "How about we do some checking on here and get her a few CDs, a card, maybe a bouquet of flowers or something?"

"Oh, and how about you make that orange and chocolate cake you did for my birthday?" Kim enthused, "Shay said in Munich that oranges are her favorite fruit…"

"Good call, KP!" Ron cheered, "And I could als-…"

"Ron, before we get into planning…" Kim said with a flash of nervousness in her gaze. Ron snapped his mouth shut and waited, nodding at Kim to continue, "It's about Shay… Or rather…" Kim sighed, a moue of discontent descending over her features, "You trust Shay, right?"

The blond nodded, his face taking on a troubled cast, "As much as I trust you, KP…"

His expression slowly slid into a frown of concentration as his fiancé continued, "I know you trust her, just had to make sure, um… The other day, she asked me something, and I want to ask you about it, but I need you to promise not to say anything to her 'til she asks, 'kay?" At another, hesitant but ultimately sure nod, Kim took a deep breath, "Ron, how… Or maybe a better way to ask is _why_ do you trust her so much?"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay scowled slightly as she toked on the expertly rolled joint she'd purchased at her preferred coffeeshop, staring at nothing as she thought back to what she'd witnessed earlier that morning. Like they had Friday morning with The Summer Gale Report, the teens and Shay had woken up to watch some programs to get a gauge of people's reactions to the news, or at least a quick survey of it. Wade's information gathering skills would come into play sometime later that day, since he was still gathering it, but they'd wanted to get a quick 'feel' for not just _what_ people were saying on TV, but _how_ they were saying it.

They hadn't been surprised that the Vulpine Network's reporting of their coming out as a trio had been mostly ambivalent, considering that Team Possible Bravo and Global Justice had embarrassed them over Deegan Tripe… What _had_ surprised them had been the fact that, aside from some of the old fashioned, reactionary types, most of the newscasters seemed to accept, perhaps even support, their relationship, without outright saying it. Then they'd switched over to more neutral stations, like the BBC, and more liberal networks such as the NANBS, the television marriage between the NanoApps software empire and the National Broadcasting Service. The one that had caught them all off guard was the sportscaster cum political commentator, who had an interview set up with the bane of her - and more recently Kimmie's - Go City University career, the apparently recently terminated professor Leonard Slocomb.

She and Kimmie had reacted… Strongly, to say the least. The commentator had allowed Slocomb to have _some_ say, which had made both women growl in annoyance at his superior attitude. Ron had calmed them, and she almost giggled as she remembered the anchorman pouncing at that moment. It had been… Vindicating, to say the least…

"_As I _said_, Mr. Altmann" Slocomb had half growled, interrupting the anchor, "Shego had already shown her _eventual_ choices even then!" The former professor had shaken his head like an enraged bull, "And Miss Possible was disruptive, disingenuous and despite her _glowing_ transcripts, couldn't do math to save her soul!"_

"_I must counter, _Sir_," the former sportscaster had said with a steely glare at the screen on which Slocomb's face was displayed. "We've received documentation about your dismissal," Slocomb had spluttered in protest, but Altmann easily bowled him over, "You claim Miss Possible was unable to perform math up to a college level?" Slocomb had muttered an agreement, which was ignored, "Yet, her school, Middleton High School of Middleton, Colorado, is one of six AAP - All Advanced Placement - campuses in the US! As I'm _certain_ you know, a C average grade there is equal to a B-plus grade anywhere else in the country! She completed a college accredited _Calculus_ course with a ninety-nine percent, yet you claimed, _improperly_, Sir, that she needed _remedial_ courses in Trigonometry!"_

"_That placement course is dung!" Slocomb had roared, "I happen to kno-…"_

"_Not to mention, _Sir_," Altmann's voice had dripped loathing and derision as he rolled over Slocomb's objection like an eighteen wheeler, "You had the sheer _audacity_ to claim she was skipping classes to, and I quote here, 'Have a good time exploring known GCU campus make out spots with her boyfriend…', and listed times she was gone." Altmann held up a hand as Slocomb had tried to interrupt, "While her boyfriend, former Middleton High School star running back and partner on Team Possible, Ronald Stoppable, was at work at _his_ job, while she was caught on both professional broadcast and cell phone video _saving **lives**_!" Slocomb had paled slightly, seeming to realize that, indeed, he'd been caught out by the anchorman's research staff as much as he had by the school investigative committee, "You, _Sir_, and the type of person you are, absolutely _disgust_ me."_

"_I don't have to sit here and receive abuse from some overly opinionated, self-important imbecile!" Slocomb had ranted, spittle flying from his mouth as he stood and tore off his microphone, yelling loudly enough to be heard as he walked away, "You can rest assured you'll hear from my lawyers!" The camera had followed him, catching him just as he'd shoved a newsroom intern who had been trying to calm him down. Security was immediately on scene, much to Kim and Shay's delight, the two women laughing and catcalling their screen._

_Ron had shaken his head at their antics, but smiled as well, "At least you don't have to worry about him when you go back, KP!"_

"Y'okay?" Rufus's squeak drew Shay from her memories with a start, and she looked down at him with a sincere smile.

"Yeah, Bud," she chuckled, reaching out to pat the mole rat, "Just thinkin' about Slocomb gettin' slapped down this morning…"

"Nuh-uh." Rufus disagreed, signing at her, "There's more on your mind, I can tell!" When Shay looked away, a slightly chagrined expression on her face, he'd prodded her elbow with a worried pout and called out, "Spill!"

"_Greggy_ called this morning…" Shay said softly, leaning down to keep their conversation private, "He… He wasn't who I talked to first, though… He has a head shrink, one of the best in Go City, Dr. Sloan… Dr. Sloan talked to me first, then told me that… That Greg wanted to talk." She shook her head, "So I said alright, and Greg started out with a groveling apology…" She sighed, her face deeply troubled, "He… I don't know, Bud… It's like… He was like he was _years_ ago, y'know? But grown up? Yet…"

Rufus let out a cooing squeak of worry, signing at her, "Still doesn't seem right? Something still off?"

"The second, Bud…" Shay whispered. There were tears in her eyes, but she was holding them back, "He… He seemed so _sincere_! Like…" She sighed again, trying to find the words, "It was like he… I dunno, dude, it was like he'd reverted to the big brother I'd always known before college… He was so _disgusted_ with how he's acted since I started college…" She glanced away from her friend, her voice almost breaking, "And… He claimed the reason for his actions was some… Asshole preacher that'd gotten under his skin… Something that Doc Sloan backed him up on." She glanced back at Rufus, her expression worried sick, "Could… Could I have been wrong all these years? Could… I dunno, if I'd have dug a bit, found out about it, could I have helped bring my brother back, well, back then?"

"Who knows?" Rufus asked, shrugging, before reaching out to pat her cheek fondly, then leaned back to sign, "It is in the past, but if he is sincere, maybe give him a chance?" Shay grimaced again, but Rufus pushed on, making sure she was still looking at him with an indignant squeak of, "_Hey!_" followed by more signing, "If you can give him a chance, maybe it will help you let go of your pain? Maybe it will help you with your relationship with Ron and Kim?"

"I…" Shay swallowed, glancing at her joint, which had gone out. She brought it back to her lips and lit it with her power, taking a deep drag from it. She held it in for perhaps thirty seconds, and when she spoke, almost no smoke left her lungs, "You may be right, dude…" She took a deep breath and continued, "But… It's _hard_, y'know? I've _hated_ him for _so_ fucking long…"

"He is your brother." Rufus signed with slightly agitated, but sure movements, "He has extended the olive branch, something you never expected from him. He seems, even to you, to be sincere. Give him the benefit of the doubt, take the chance…" Rufus smiled and reached out again, hugging her cheek before stepping back and finishing, "And if he lets you down, you have Ron, Kim and I. You have _our_ friends! We _all_ have your back!" Shay smiled and let out a soft giggle as she realized what he was saying, and then her eyes widened in shock as he continued, "You also have Jody and his wife, the twins of your family. They've all grown, and you know as well as I that they love you, and will have your back as well."

"You're right, dude…" Shay sighed, biting her lip a moment before finishing her joint in one long pull. She signaled the server over after she blew out a stream of smoke, smiling at the cute blond Dutchman in his early twenties. He had soft brown eyes, freckles, a small nose, and was fairly thin, but seemed to work out some. In her current laid back tone she requested, "Another two of the same for each of us, if you could, and… Do you have any fresh soup?"

"Yes," the boy smiled back, and if he saw the remnants of tears in Shay's eyes, he was professional enough not to mention them, "A bowl each?"

"Two for me, one for him." she nodded, "And… A Coke each, too. Please and thank you."

"Okay." the young man nodded, walking away.

"Good thing I'm not single…" Shay murmured, drawing a raised eyebrow from Rufus, "Hey, he's cute, and he's got a nice ass… I'd've eaten him _all_ up a year ago!"

Rufus choked out a laugh as he sipped at the water sitting next to him, before wiping his lips and signing, "He looks like Ron with smaller ears and a softer chin."

Shay blinked and glanced back at the man, tracing a now more neutral, appraising eye - the kind she had used to reserve for jewelry heists - over him. She was honestly shocked to find that Rufus was, indeed, quite correct. In fact, Ron was a bit more buff than the server… Ron had bigger arms and a thicker chest, even his legs were larger, and Ron just _looked_ more solid from his years as a run around distraction and his senior year as a running back. His ass was a bit thicker, but that wasn't necessarily a _bad_ thing, and… Well, even with the ears, she could admit that Ron's face was a tad cuter, in a somewhat innocent fashion.

"You're right, Bud…" Shay sighed despondently, "You're absolutely right…"

"Go see 'em e'rly?" Rufus asked aloud, drawing Shay's attention to him.

"Yeah," Shay nodded, smiling softly at her friend, "We'll finish one of the two each I got, eat and then head out, sound good?"

"Uh-huh, uh-huh!" Rufus agreed, smiling happily at his Human's other Lady and giving her a thumbs up.

Fifteen minutes later, the two were walking through the marketplace where Theresa Stephanidis, Midas' sister, had her food stall. She grimaced at the light drizzle that had started, but thankful it'd been chilly enough for her to wear a windbreaker over her lavender, poet shirt style sweater and jeans. Unusually for her, the mid-heel boots rang out in the relatively empty section of the market with an echoing, sodden sound as she perused a nearby shop for a filling carry along breakfast. The soup, while filling, had only just dented the gnawing hunger she normally had, let alone one driven by munchies.

After a few moments, she decided on a trio of _stroopwafels_, or syrup waffle. The thin, round baked waffles were cut in half and a thick, buttery syrup of brown sugar and cinnamon, with finely diced apple chunks at her request, was spread between the warm waffles, effectively gluing them together. She salivated as she watched the clerk make them, knowing the confections would give her plenty of calories to counter the munchies and her own power-driven hunger. She waited patiently, devouring her first _stroopwafel_ as they waited on Rufus' order of sausage and potato _pannenkoeken_, smiling in a way she knew made her look like an idiot. She couldn't help it, though; Rufus' insights had struck home, and she had a good feeling about the day.

A couple minutes later, Rufus was cradled in the crook of her arm, munching happily away on his _pannenkoeken_ while she finished off the last of her _stroopwafel_. She made relatively quick time over to the place she'd told Kim and Ron to meet her in the note she'd left behind, smiling happily when she saw her Princess waiting there. She pouted slightly when she realized that Ron was nowhere to be seen, but she presumed he had a good reason. She saw that Kim's gaze was across the market towards a collection of shops clustered around a music store and felt a mote of amusement at her clear absorption in the activity. Shay, realizing Kim wasn't quite there at the moment, sat at the table without invitation. She cleared her throat several seconds later when Kim still hadn't reacted to her presence.

"Shay!" Kim yelped at the sound, jumping half out of her seat and turning towards her the pale woman in shock, "You're as bad as Ronnie!"

"So I've heard…" Shay smiled at Kim's bout of obliviousness, adding with a chuckle, "Or you could've been spaced out, since I wasn't exactly being quiet!" Shay sighed airily as Kim ducked her head and looked around sheepishly. The security consultant glanced around as well, asking, "So where's our Doofus?"

Kim blinked, then gave the pale woman a beaming smile, offhandedly saying "Oh, he's checking a couple stalls out is all…" Kim's evasive tone was missed by Shay, but Rufus chittered at her questioningly, and Kim chuckled at him, "Ron's just looking around, Rufus. How're you?"

"Ho-kay!" Rufus chirped, scampering down from Shay's shoulder to run over and jump on Kim's, giving her a big hug and a mole rat peck on the cheek.

"You guys got out and about early…" Shay remarked easily, not really caring that they had. She reveled in the mellow feeling from her smoking and the easy, deep love she'd come to feel for the red-head.

"We were woken up by most of your family calling to get ahold of you." Kim shrugged, "Sandy said she'd try getting ahold of you later, but they wanted to chat with you about stuff…" Kim's gaze darkened slightly and her lips pursed, "Including Hego, apparently."

"Yeah," Shay sighed, her mellow faltering somewhat. She remembered Rufus' words to her, but it was harder to let go than everyone seemed to think it should be, especially considering how many years of absolute hate she felt for him. She sighed, shaking her head as if to dismiss the emotions, though she knew it wouldn't be that easy, "He… Called me this morning… Or rather, his shrink called for him so I didn't hang up immediately… We… Talked."

"I thought that's who you were talking to when I woke up to go to the bathroom." Kim nodded sagely, forcing herself to relax and reaching over to grab one of Shay's hands. The red-head held up the hand and kissed the palm gently, before cupping it to her cheek and nuzzling into it.

"What's that for?" Shay asked, her face once again all smiles as the simple gesture of affection washed over her.

"Nothing," Kim smiled at her, "Just letting you know I love you."

"Love you, too…" Shay murmured, blinking against a slight sting in her eyes.

"You okay?" Kim asked, her face falling slightly into concern.

"Fine!" Shay chirped, "Just… Happy to hear you say that…"

"Would you feel even better," Ron's voice called out from just behind her, making Shay jump this time, "If I said, 'I love you', too, Shay?"

"Ass!" the pale woman chuckled, reaching out to slap his shoulder, before grabbing the same shoulder and urging him down on the bench beside her. She gave him a soft, contemplative smile for a few seconds before half whispering to him, "Yes, it would."

Ron leaned in quickly and gave her a quick kiss on the lips, giving her his best goofball smile before saying softly, "I love you, Shay Gottlieb."

"Love you too!" Shay chirped happily, her face feeling almost unusually tight from her broad smile. She leaned into him, giving him a more intense, if somewhat chaste, kiss before pulling back and chuckling at his shocked face. "What's wrong, Sport?" she prodded him, "Can't I give you a kiss like our Princess does?"

"I think he's just surprised," Kim lightly laughed along with Rufus with a teasing smile on her face, "he's still getting used to you getting used to him after you said to him that it would take a while to get used to him."

Shay blinked and looked back at Kim, running what the red-head had said through her mind before shaking her head and muttering, "No word games right now, please…"

"Huh?" Kim asked in confusion, her face screwing up slightly.

"She _was_ at a coffeeshop, KP, y'know, for anti-anxious needs?" Ron said while holding his thumb and forefinger up as if taking a toke from a joint, buy winking as if to imply it was more than medicinal. The action, and the wording, earned a slap on each shoulder from the two ladies, and an indignant squeak from Rufus.

"Anxiety!" Shay said before Kim could, shaking her head, "You're _such_ a goofball, dude…"

"I am what I is!" Ron chuckled, then became a bit more serious, "Just so you know…" Ron held up his wrist Kimmunicator, showing Shay a name on the faceplate, "We were asked if we could meet up with someone in about a half hour."

"Okay." Shay said simply, shrugging, "I'm guessing it's important?"

"Yeah, and we'd better get going…" Kim sighed, though there was a troubled aspect to her gaze as she stood. Shay caught it and cocked her head, but Kim merely shook her head. As the group headed to a water taxi, Kim hung back enough from to quickly say to Shay, "Sorry to worry you, but… Well, _I'm_ worried about this…"

Shay leaned in to whisper in Kim's ear, "We're meeting up with someone from GJ?" Kim nodded, "Willie?" Kim gave another nod and Shay sighed, "Hopefully it won't require action right away…" She stood and reached up to ruffle Kim's hair, suddenly worried that there might be someone watching them, someone she'd have missed due to her altered state of mind. With her hand still in Kim's hair, she said, "And… Thanks, Princess, for not asking about Hego this morning when you got up… I love you."

"Love you too…" Kim shook her head, now worried as to why Shay would act like that, and began to fall into a barely concealed mission mode…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Good afternoon," Kim said as they entered the moderately sized, rather exclusive restaurant in central Amsterdam. Like the high rise hotel it was housed in, it was only a few months old, but had a very good reputation for its pan-European cuisine. It was the first building after the Hausmann Suites hotel in Munich to be built using the Humanized Lorwardian construction technology, and it showed. The hotel was thirty stories tall, and the restaurant was situated on the upper level of the the building. The décor was very modern and up to date, with soft, slightly off-white colored walls, bold, black chrome surrounds for the windows, table and chair supports, granite tabletops and cobalt blue carpeting and ceiling tiles. The maître d'hôtel looked up and, before he could speak, the red-head gave him a disarming smile and said, "Party of three, to meet with a Mr. Basil?"

"Right this way, ladies, sir?" the man bowed slightly, and if he recognized them, he gave no indication of it. He then turned and walked towards the rear of the dining area, and the stairs leading to the upper level of the restaurant.

"Nice place," Ron said in a glib yet quiet fashion as followed the maître d', taking a deep but unobtrusive sniff of the aromas wafting from the open window into the kitchen. He nodded in satisfaction as he watched several line cooks, watched over by two sous chefs, working in a quick, efficient manner, preparing many of the dishes on the fly, before the view was cut off by the stairwell entrance. The wait staff was quick and efficient, as well, as he watched one appear at a table just as the man raised a hand to ask for a refill of his coffee. "Nice ambiance, love the interior design, very cozy while being open, which is great for the servers…"

"Ron," Shay said to him, chuckling softly, "Your foodie's showing…"

"So it is." Ron shrugged, smiling at her, "But I gotta hand it to them, the place looks top-notch."

"Thank you, sir." the maître d' said with an appreciative smile as they walked up to a set of closed, opaque glass doors a short ways away from the stairs, "We strive for excellence here. And here you are, one of our three private dining suites. Your server will be up in a moment, is there anything you'd like to drink?"

"How about a Galliano and soda for each of us?" Shay asked in a smooth fashion, earning an appreciative nod from the maître d'.

"Your server will bring them right up." he said with a bow and left.

The four members of Team Possible Alpha walked into the private dining suite. It was approximately sixteen meters square, about three high, and was as modern as the rest of the restaurant. One wall had floor to ceiling windows that had triple pane glass for sound isolation, with great views of the city, Vondelpark, Rembrandtpark and Sloterpark being easily picked out. The soft, modern jazz music playing in the dining room was more pronounced in the intimate space, playing from hidden speakers that must have been of high quality, if the cocked head and appreciative smirk on Kim's face were any indication.

The table, while similar to the ones in the main room and set up for four, was larger and would like sit six people comfortably. There were menus set out and waiting for them, as well as water and silverware. The chairs at each placement were more comfortably padded, executive office style chairs with caster wheels, unlike the more traditional fixed but comfortable looking chairs out front.

Their attention, despite the room's comfortable surroundings, quickly fell upon its lone occupant. As soon as the door closed, Will Du sat forward and sighed in relief, picking up an open, but as yet untouched pale beer of some kind and sitting back. It was apparent he wasn't there as a publicly visible member of GJ. He was wearing a comfortable, stylish looking soft pink denim dress shirt with a vaguely western motif, and from what they could see, a pair of comfortable wool slacks. There was a high quality wool blazer, the style of which screamed to be left open to display the shirt, over his chair's back and his GJ issue wristwatch had a public cover of a high quality Swiss watch. He cut a surprisingly dapper figure as he waved them towards the other seats, saying softly, "Kim, Ron, Sh-… Do you prefer Shay or Shego?"

"That depends," Shay said as she took her seat, a smirk on her face, "Am I talking to Mr. Rebar-shoved-up-his-ass, or Slick Willie?"

"Er…" Will blushed, something that caught Kim, Ron and Rufus off guard, dropping into a somewhat relieved sounding West Texas drawl "Ah… Guess it'd prob'ly be the latter, if eithuh you 'r Ah were single 'n' all?" He reached out and took a quick sip of his beer as Shay raised an eyebrow at him, then coughed in a slightly nervous fashion.

"Shay, then." the superpowered woman said as she took her seat between Ron and Kim, who were already seating themselves opposite one another to Will's left and right. Shay was about to speak when the door opened and a well dressed waitress walked in with a tray, three fluted table glasses filled with a pale golden, slightly fizzy concoction. In nearly accentless English, she asked, "Have you had time to peruse the menu, or do you need a few minutes?"

"Give us a few, if you don't mind?" Kim said with a smile, drawing one from the server as well.

"Okay, if you are ready before I return, feel free to buzz me," she produced a thumb-drive sized device with a button on it, "And I will be with you as soon as possible."

"Thank you." Ron murmured as he looked over the menu; it was obvious he'd already decided, considering his expression.

As soon as the server left, Shay spoke up, a look of serious, intense curiosity on her face as she stared at Will, "One question, before anything else, Slick…"

Will gulped nervously at the suddenly serious expression on Shay's face, "Yes, Shay?"

"Cuddlebuddies?" the pale woman blurted, before snickering half madly, "_You_ set DNAmy on her living Cuddlebuddy crusade by asking her to make a real, living cuddlebuddy for you?"

"You're a Cuddler?" Kim gasped in a half-giggle, her tone shifting to ont that was accusatory and amused at once, "And DNAmy is _your_ fault?"

"In mah defense," Will objected, "Ah was in a kinda rough spot!" He turned a half-accusatory glance towards Shay, "Th' woman Ah'd fallen in love with'd left me hangin'…" He smirked slightly when Shay's smirk became a bit plastic, the other three members of Team Possible Alpha glancing back and forth between the two, "Ah was waitin' foh mah superhero girlfrien' at a _rathuh_ exclusive rest'rant while she w's out stealin' her own moneh from Go City's main US Bank branch…"

"Are you say-…" Ron started, but a strangled sound of protest from Shay's throat stopped him, drawing his attention to his new girlfriend.

"What?" Shay cried after a few seconds, seeming to be shocked to the bone. However, of of all the things Will had said, the one she latched on to shocked everyone except Will, "_You_ were in love with _me_?" She gaped at him, shaking her head in disbelief, "But I was… I thought… Why didn't you _say_ anything to me, you idiot?" Her mouth worked for a few seconds before she groaned in annoyance at Will's blandly chagrined expression, "I'd half fallen for you, but after the Team Go conference room thing, I thought I was just another fuc-…"

"Hego kinda tol' me th' same thing 'bout you that night, Shay…" Will interrupted, sighing and shaking his head as Shay grumbled in a seeming lack of surprise, "An' Ah guess he must've deleted th' email Ah sent ya?"

"What mai-..." she asked before growling, "Probably…" A brief moment later, she sighed, glowering down at her Galliano and soda, before reaching out to take a sip of it.

Kim opened her mouth to speak into the silence, but Will's rueful chuckle and comment stopped her, "Ah guess we were both a rahght pair'a idjits, as mah Daddy'd say?"

"Yeah…" At that moment, what she was saying, and who she was saying it to, struck home. "Er…" she muttered numbly before glancing back and forth between her girlfriend and her girlfriend's-… _Her-... Their_ boyfriend… As a deep, intense blush crawled from the top of her head to below the line of her shirt. "Um, y'know when I said my recruiter with GJ and I kinda had a thing going?"

"You…" Kim said with a sardonic half-smirk, half-frown, "And Will…"

"Ah wasn' always a stuck up, unbendin', rule mong'rin', anal reten'ive asshole, Kim." Will defended himself with a blush crawling up his neck, "Ah used t'be a lot like Ah am now: an anal reten'ive but lov'ble asshole!"

"Uh-huh, right…" Kim drawled with a glower at Shay's apparent former paramore.

"Admit it, Kimmie," Shay declared with a half-pouting chuckle, "if Willie'd've been himself when you first met him, you'd've probably gone gaga for him…" When Kim opened her mouth and raised an eyebrow in preparation to protest, the security consultant raised her hands, her left with her palm up and the other ticking off points by folding her fingers with the right, "He's cute, he has a nice ass, he _is_ lovable when he's like this… And he's surprisingly gentlemanly, believe it or not!"

"Maybe." Kim shrugged, reaching over to pat Shay's cheek teasingly, "And gotcha!"

"Bitch!" Shay mock growled, her blush beginning to recede slightly. With a put-upon sigh, she shook her head and asked innocently, "So which of those abominations did you pay Amy to make?"

"They're _not_ abominations!" Will and Kim countered, before staring at each other in a measuring fashion. After a moment, the two laughed, Will continuing with an embarrassed smile, "A Howl."

"The bassoon and horny owl cross?" Ron asked as if horrified. He knew that he was exaggerating his horror, but the crossbreed was, to his eyes, freakier than the thought of Adrena Lynn in a porno screaming out her catch phrase during the money shot. Then he realized he'd slipped into his older, and still occasionally habitual word substitution, and flinched his shoulder away from Shay.

"Basset hound and Great Horned Owl, _Ronnie_!" Kim accentuated his name with a light kick to his shin, the sharp pain of which sent his shoulder back into Shay's slapping range.

The superpowered woman gave him a pretty solid punch to his left shoulder, instead of the slap he'd expected upon realizing where he was. He winced and held his shoulder and shin at the same time, glancing over at Will, "It's abuse, I swear it is!"

"An' Ah'm sure y'enjoy ev'ry second of it!" Will countered, snickering at the blond. The expression, something so unexpected from Will, made Ron, Kim and Rufus stare at him, while Shay just shook her head.

"Yup," the pale woman chuckled, "He's back to his old self…"

"That was really weird, coming from you, Will." Ron winced, then chuckled himself. "Anyway, Tara has one of those," he turned back to Kim, letting loose with a mild, if theatric shudder, "but you _gotta_ admit, they're kinda creepy, KP…"

"Nope!" Kim quipped with a smile, "If you wouldn't have gotten me my Pandaroo, Mom and Dad would've gotten me a Howl, so _neah_!" The red-head stuck her tongue out at her fiancé.

"An b'sides," Will chuckled, "Mah li'l Ezzie's a sweetheart, an' a damn fahne huntin' do-…" He paused, then shrugged, "Well, huntin' Howl." He smiled brightly as a thought crossed his mind, "An' she's smart 'nuf that she only eats what she's fed in 'er dog dish 'r rodents, instead'a huntin' the cats 'r the family's rabbits back home!" Everyone laughed at the comment, which led to a brief, comfortable silence, which Shay broke with a sigh.

"Sorry I didn't call you to find out… Y'know…" She waved her hand vaguely between herself and Will, before glancing to her right and left, "Besides, I think it worked out for the best, since I have Kimmie and Ronnie now…"

"Ah s'pose it did, didn' it?" Will asked with a rakish, winning smirk, nodding, "Ah caught the show las' night when Ah was at Li-… Well, when Ah was out an about…"

Shay caught his slip and cocked her head to the side, a devilish gleam in her eye, "And it sounds like you finally got Betts to admit she's wanting to try some Filipino and Chinese delicacies… Last night, I'm guessing?"

"Yeah, well…" Will began, then said in a tone so innocent it was obviously false, "Who said anything about Dr. Director?"

"Your way-too-innocent face!" Rufus signed, with Shay translating. Will's face fell and he once again blushed, this time much lighter, and Rufus called out aloud, "B'sted!"

"Be that as it may…" Kim said with a soft chuckle, before her face became a mask of seriousness, "I'm assuming you asked us here to discuss something important, and not general pleasantries?"

"Yeah…" Will nodded, opening his mouth to speak when a few subdued beeps from the buzzer on the table announced the return of their waitress. Will sighed and stood, "Ah suggest th' sea bass, it's done perfectly, or th' braised beef dish… An' what Ah have t'discuss involves… Let's jus' say trouble, foh now, an' that Ah su'gest we discuss it _aftuh_ we eat…"

"Oh…" Ron said with a suddenly paranoid expression, something niggling him vaguely in the back of his mind, "This sounds like five hundred miles of bad road…"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay let out a sighing hum of pleasure as one set of fingers meandered across her legs and two more brushed along her scalp and shoulders. She was, overall, incredibly happy about the way the day had gone, especially dinner Ron had cooked for them after she and Kim finished sparring. The birthday cake had been a complete surprise, the gooey, Mandarin orange and chocolate dessert, topped with a drizzle of chocolate liqueur based sauce being positively sinful in its deliciousness. If her delighted, bouncy reaction to the confectionary delight was embarrassing, her squeal at the thoughtful gifts the two had given her had been more so. Ron and Kim had purchased two CDs from bands she loved that she hadn't had a chance to get, a card with a simple, beautiful poem, and an absolutely stunning bouquet of orchids.

From Rufus, she'd received two different, small bags of her prefered style of pot, which had drawn a huge smile from her. She'd thanked the clothing-challenged rodent with a big kiss on his forehead, which made her little bud blush, but she'd love his gift as much as Kim and Ron's gifts to her; after all, she'd only mentioned preferring a head change to a body high to the little guy once! Then there'd been the promise of an hour long massage from her loves after sharing one of the bags with Rufus… Amazingly, the eventual call from Sandy, with Mego, his twins and their twin brothers, had further relaxed her, something she'd been immensely happy about. The twins had calmed down after becoming sophomores in high school, and Sandy had brought Jody almost completely back down to earth… And their twins, Sam and Dean, were absolutely adorable, and had been worth the call all by themselves.

Still, there had been some, as Princess would say, drama to the day… The early morning call from Hego, and the news from Will involving his suspicions about Betty Director being replaced, who had replaced her… And the meeting they'd all been asked to attend late the next day at a safehouse only three people in the world knew about… Even so, the news had been unable to completely take the edge off of Will being much like the Will she'd first met and fallen for, even with the teasing both Ron and Kim had given her they'd left.

So, despite that, or perhaps _to_ spite of that, the day had been great overall… And just the catharsis she'd needed after the interview three days earlier!

Now she was sitting on the huge couch in her… In _their_ den, enjoying their attention. Ron was half-laying against the arm of the couch wearing just his boxers, his legs spread and almost cupping around underneath her bare rear while his feet supported the underside of her knees. Her legs were as bare as her rear end, while the rest of her covered in a gossamer thin, lavender camisole, something that had drawn both Kim and Ron's attention like a moth to a flame. The boy… No, the_ man _she had so recently admitted to loving, was at that moment, running his fingers through her hair with ticklingly soft contact to her scalp, moving from the front of her head to the back, then down towards her neck, where she suspected he'd once again give her neck and shoulders that lovely, talented massage he was capable of.

Earlier she'd been laying against the very same section of couch with the completely nude Kim had been laying in an almost spooning position behind her; when Ron had reminded her of the massage offer, he'd taken her place and Kim had moved down somewhat to begin to massage her legs and feet with gentle but firm pressure. She was proving almost as talented with her massage as Ron was, and, for the time being, she felt almost as if she knew what heaven felt like…

"You okay, Shay?" Kim whispered up at her, voice heavy with concern. Shay opened her eyes, her vision blurred with tears for the third time that day.

The smile on her face, however, showed that she was far from sad as she gazed red-haired lover and nodded, "I'm fine…" She let out a small laugh, rolling her neck as Ron moved his hands to her shoulders, "Better than fine, really…"

"Why…" Kim started, only to be interrupted by another chuckle, this one a bit more watery than the last.

"Well, doy!" Shay reached down with her hands, holding them above her hips expectantly. Kim reached up hesitantly, then squeaked as the older woman pulled the red-head up her body, settling her so that her chin rested just above her breasts, resting their now clasped hands on her own shoulders. "Like when we were at that bench in the market, it's 'cause I'm happy, you silly, beautiful red-head."

"Oh…" Kim blushed, glancing between the happy, tear-filled gaze of her pale lover and her fiancé, who shook his head in loving amusement, "Doy… Sorry, I'm…"

"Half asleep and still distracted by the potentate fallout from the interview?" Ron asked, his face freezing slightly when both women sighed.

"Potential!" they called out at once, neither trying for the jinx or a slap against Ron's shoulders or the back of his head, despite both of them drawing a breath and moving to do both. After a moment, all three of them began laughing, Shay's tears quickly forgotten in their shared mirth.

Their mirth slowly petered out, and Ron settled his hands over both of theirs, squeezing gently as he murmured, "That's better, you two…" He leaned forward slightly and placed a soft kiss just behind the angle of Shay's jaw. The reaction of the older woman was immediate and surprising to all concerned. The pale woman let out a giggling squeak and flinched away slightly, glancing sidelong at Ron, while a shiver seemed to arc down her neck to her back. An instant later, goosebumps raised along the area of her neck he kissed, before crawling halfway around her neck and down to her shoulder. "What the hell?" she protested, her eyes wide and filled with both annoyance and wonder, "That tickled, Doofus!"

Kim started to giggle at Shay's shocked tone, asking delightedly, "I thought only your feet were ticklish?"

"So did I!" Shay squealed as Ron kissed her again, a little back and upwards from the spot, placing his lips just behind her ear, "Stop it, Ronnie!" With that, she gave her body a quarter turn in place and craned her neck up to deliver a short kiss to his lips, before pulling back just enough to speak. "At least, the tickling ones, please?" The implication of the comment was just beginning to dawn in Ron's eyes, before Shay let her eyes slide closed, leaning across the tiny gap between their lips once again. This time, the kiss wasn't a short interruption of his actions, and quickly deepened in its intensity.

She began to turn her body, breaking the kiss long enough to mumble a thanks to Kim as the red-head let go of her hands, which allowed the former thief to let go of Ron's and turn, fully laying on top of him. The blond quickly slid his rear end down the couch some to accommodate their new position, his action seeming completely instinctual. Soon, she was laying completely on top of him, his slightly shorter stature actually helping the position as she could rest her belly against his crotch and slide her legs under Kim's until her feet were against the other arm of the couch. They didn't break the kiss once during the maneuvering, even when Kim crawled up her body, trailing soft kisses up her backbone that sent delicious shivers through her body.

"Wow… This is so…" Kim trailed off when she got up near Shay's left ear, the tone clearly conveying just what the redhead didn't say. Shay melted even further into the kiss, slowly sliding her tongue out, sighing as Ron's tongue met hers in a playful dance within their mouths. She snaked her arms up, twining her hands in Ron's hair as Kim intentionally dragged her breasts across Shay's back, the obvious arousal the red-head felt only adding to the older woman's pleasure with the situation. Shay almost let out another squeak of surprise, but the sound quickly turned into a deep, sensuous moan as she felt Kim's nimble, talented tongue - a tongue that kept getting better and better at sexual play - slowly trace around the helix of her ear.

Shay broke the kiss long enough to mutter, "My, aren't _we _the playful kitten!" She quickly returned to Ron's still parted mouth as Kim gently sucked and licked at the upper curve of her ear. That was one of what Shay called her 'hot buttons', something sure to send her crazy with desire. To her surprise, however, she didn't feel the need to turn and lavish attention onto the red-head. Instead, she was quite content to map Ron's mouth with her tongue, to let go of his hair and trace the contours of his cute face, his neck and his solid chest and shoulders with her hands.

Kim's lips moved from Shay's ears to her neck, engendering more goosebumps, but not the tickling that Ron's simple gesture of affection had. "This is perfect…" Kim whispered, obvious by her tone that she'd spoken without realizing it. She let her hands trace the muscles of Shay's shoulders, before moving with delicate softness to her sides. At the same time, Ron's hands joined his fiancée's to follow the supple line of Shay's back before both of them were sharing space on the former thief's firm ass with gentle caresses and squeezes. The older woman let out a mewling purr of appreciation at the sensation, before again breaking the kiss.

She pulled back from Ron slightly and stared into his soft brown eyes. She beheld a mingling of desire, curiosity and, to her immense pleasure, love without any of the worry she'd half expected to see in his gaze… Worry she knew would have stopped the sensuous exploration in a heartbeat. Smiling down at him, she wiggled her rear against his and Kim's hands, sighing out, "Like that, Sport?"

"Nah," he said with uncharacteristic bluntness, smirking slightly as she raised an eyebrow, "I_ love _it…" Shay groaned and rolled her eyes, reaching up to slap his shoulder. The movement brought into focus the fact that Ron was_ quite _hard beneath her. The pale woman gasped in surprise, biting her lip in a moment of indecision.

Taking a deep breath, she let the past couple weeks filter through her consciousness, and listened inside her mind. The noticeable lack of a condescending voice - or even that voice's screaming incoherence - and only the faintest shimmer of uncertainty in her belly was promising. There was also Kim's seeming arousal at just the sight of her and the red-head's fiancé kissing, which was turning Shay on almost as much as the kiss she'd just shared with Ron. Finally, the blond's gaze struck her… While it was teasing, the deep, almost devotional love she saw was overtaking the, the same that she'd seen in his eyes while looking at Kimmie… And despite the curiosity, and matching the desire beat for beat… The heaving of his chest was a counterpoint to that very love, yet the utter lack of expectation from the kiss - as if he would be content with the kiss and_ just _the kiss - gave truth to the love she saw in turn! All of this crossed her mind in a flash, and helped make her decision all the easier.

Still biting her lip, Shay placed one hand on his chest. Her other hand pulled her camisole up, the silk tickling her skin almost sinfully, before casually tossing the article behind the couch. Being fully exposed to him was nothing new, but this time she reveled in his wondering gaze, the admiration of her body turning her on all the more.

After several seconds more of drinking in his unabashed stare, again gently tracing her fingers across his chest before moving down to his abdomen, she pulled her legs up underneath her until she was on her knees, sliding her body forward to place her hips upon his. As her hot center slid over the bulge in his boxers, Ron blinked, looking almost as if he'd forgotten just how turned on he was… And when she ground herself lightly along the length of that bulge, his eyes widened further and he opened his mouth to speak. All that came out, though, was an aroused groan, and she silenced him with a finger on his lips, before four softly spoken words slipped from her mouth, "I love you, Ronnie…" She smiled down at his happily surprised expression and added questioningly, "Trust me?"

"A-always, Shay." Ron finally managed to groan after working his mouth for several seconds. Shego could understand why, and barely repressed the urge to groan herself. The blond's hard member had nestled easily between her swollen nether lips as slid further upwards in a slow, lazy fashion. Finally, the silk covered underside of his cock's head was nestled against the sensitive wetness of her center, and she let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.

"I… I trust you both…" Shay whispered as she squirmed against the sensation, drawing another groan from Ron, "I love you both… So,_ so _much…"

"Love you too, Shay… And Kim, obviously!" Ron whispered back, chuckling despite the visible effort he gave against the urge to grind against Shay as she was against him.

Kim, under no such compunction, slowly leaned against Shay's back, her arms snaking around the older woman to gently caress her breasts, before whispering in her ear, "I'll always love you… Every bit as much as I love _our_ Ronnie…" As if the words were a signal, Shay lifted herself fully on her knees and shuffled forward a little more.

"Wha-…" Kim started, then gasped in sudden understanding about what was happening, "Oh… _Oh_!" With obvious reluctance, she pulled back enough to give her two lovers the room they needed to continue, but kept her hands nestled gently against the sexy flare of Shay's hips. The pale woman smiled as she reached behind and under her thighs, smoothly hooking her fingers into the waistband of Ron's boxers. She gave a slight tug, the blond getting the meaning immediately, staring into her eyes. He smiled up at her and lifted his hips after the slightest hesitation, letting go of her and helping her as she began to slide the boxers down. Kim helped by briefly letting go and grabbing the bottoms of the boxers, yanking them down and out of Ron's hands, deftly maneuvering them under her legs and his knees before tossing them onto the floor. An instant later, her hands once again sought out her pale lover's hips, gently caressing the beautiful curves as if to spur her onward.

Shay squirmed as she felt Ron's hardness try to spring back against her, before she settled down gently, everything settling back to nearly the same position as before. This time, however, the underside of his member's head was just grazing her hard clit while her slick, bare lips settling around its middle… And both of them seemed happy that there was no longer the smooth silk intervening in the sensation that passed between them. "_You_ look like you're rarin' to go, too, eh, Sport?" Shego teased with a soft titter, before sliding up and down along his length once again…

"Kimmun'cat'r!" Rufus cried in unfettered annoyance, landing hard on the back of the couch with the beeping device in his hands.

"Rufus!" The sound of his Human and his Human's Ladies protesting his sudden appearance, and all jumping in startlement and away from each other as if hit by a taser, told him that he'd interrupted something of great import. He glanced down and realized that Shay had been about to make love to Ron. He glanced back up, seeing that they all stared at him in a mix of annoyance and, in Shay's case, one of embarrassed chagrin and… Guilt? Loss? Something… Not quite what he'd hoped to see… And the moment she realized he'd seen it was when Shay frowned and half growled at him, "Way to interrupt the moment, Bud!"

"Oh, sowwy!" he cried, dropping the Kimmunicator and bowing his head. Without thinking, he started to sign at Shego, "I am sorry, I was enjoying the nice mellow from what you shared with me and it started beeping! And you said you wanted Wade to call as soon as he had a good feel for the interview's response, and it's about the time he said that he'd do it so I thou-…"

"Um, what're you doin', Rufus?" Ron asked, the look on his face obviously hoping his question would defuse the situation… And yes, that it hadn't halted the moment completely. Shay let out a huff of annoyance and sat back, shaking her head.

"It's American Sign Language, Sport…" she sighed out, smirking down at the little rodent.

"Um, Rufus?" Kim asked in a slightly annoyed tone, "How long have you been able to sign?"

Rufus squeaked in consternation, his blush deepening and covering most of his body, so Shay answered for him, "He's apparently known it since Kimmie babysat a deaf kid a few years back."

"Ya huh!" Rufus agreed, interrupting Kim when she opened her mouth to speak, "Er… Sowwy 'gain!"

"And as you can see, he's also stoned as hell!" Shay snickered at Rufus's wince, "Anyway, he said it's Wade calling, probably with response results of the interview…"

He began to sign again, and Shay translated for him, "Sorry for interrupting, I really did not realize what was going on. Next time I will look before leaping."

"It's okay, Rufus." Shay said with a somewhat despondent sigh, reaching out and patting his head, "And, well… We_ did _want to find out, so…" She squirmed a bit, as if trying to decide if she wanted to say more or just let things stand.

"Yeah…" Ron sounded a bit despondent as well, but he smiled and reached up to place his hands on Shay's hips, "And you'd better stop that if you're not in the mood anymore, Shay, 'cause that's_ not _helping calm_ me_ down at all!"

The pale woman responded with a soft chuckle and, with a reluctance she was sure the teens felt, completely resettled herself in a seated position within the circle of Ron's legs. She wrapped her legs around his waist and pulled him closer to her, giving him a quick but deep kiss before leaning her head against his shoulder. "Sorry, Ronnie…" she murmured earnestly, pulling back to lean into Kim as she nestled herself behind Shay, splaying her legs behind Shay's rear and in between Ron's feet. She was about to speak when a yawn suddenly broke out from her, the expression looking quite cute with her hair disheveled as it was. She shook her head and chuckled, "We'd better see what Wade wants…" With a teasingly loud huff, Ron leaned back on the couch, resting his head and screwing up his face into a puppy dog pout.

Kim giggled at the sad attempt, which drew snickers from everyone on the couch, further ruining Ron's attempt to look pathetically sad. Shaking her head, Shay reached over and picked up the still beeping device, holding it such that it only caught her from her shoulders up and activated it. "Hey there, Nerdlinger…" she said with an unintentionally short tone, "What's up?"

"Er…" Wade said as he looked to Shay's right as Kim laid her chin on the older woman's shoulder and put her arms around her, "I'm interrupting something, aren't I?"

"You could say that!" Shay said in a serious tone, before snickering lightly and shaking her head, "And we forgot you were gonna call us around this time, so…"

"Sorry." Wade shrugged slightly, then frowned, "Er, where's Ron?"

"Hi, Wade!" Ron called, lifting his hand up and turning his palm towards the device before waving at the younger teen.

"Oh,_ God_, guys!" Wade half protested, half apologized, his face blushing visibly despite the deep mahogany of his skin, "I'm_ so _sorry!" The laughter his response drew from the trio embarrassed him a bit more, enough that he covered his face in his hands and muttered, "Please, kill me now?"

"D'ya think I'm that nice, Nerdlinger?" Shay asked with a raised eyebrow, "I'm going to be on my deathbed and call you up_ just _to remind you of thi-mmmph?"

Kim ignored the annoyed half-glare she received for placing her hand over Shay's mouth and turned to address Wade with a titter on the edges of her voice, "What's the sitch, Wade?"

"Well, you wanted me to call when I got solid stats on people's reaction to the interview…" Wade squeaked unevenly, yet valiantly ignoring his embarrassment as he uncovered his face and typing at one of his keyboards, "Here we are… Aggregate results for the last three days from six social media sites, positive and negative specifically about the announcement in the interview and directed at you for quote-unquote 'serious reasons' - such as congratulations, grudging complements, religious support or objections, homophobia or prejudice of various types - is as follows: thumbs down, dislikes, comments and etcetera equal out to about twelve thousand two hundred," Shay winced slightly, glancing worriedly between Ron and Kim, the latter of which had an expectant, almost devilish smirk on her face for some reason, "while thumbs up, likes and etcetera total out to about…" Wade paused and blinked, obviously not having expected the number, "Er… Wow… Um, a little over two million, nine hundred and twenty three thousand."

"Holy shit…" Shay spoke for all five of them, her eyes wide in honest shock; even Kim seeming surprised at _that _high of a number.

"Yeah…" Wade muttered, before glancing through his custom programmed filters, "Of the comments in and of themselves, there were thousands, actually _tens_ of thousands of negative comments against the negative comments directed at you, or against the thumbs down and etcetera. I didn't include the roughly thirty three thousand negative comments about how one or another of you didn't deserve to have the other two, 'cause, well, that's just stupid…"

"Yeah," Shay hedged, "But they could cause publicity problems in the end…"

"Eh, most of them will pass, most likely," Wade countered, then smiled at the pale woman, "But there's a few that seemed more… Serious, and I have a watch program going on their accounts, just in case."

"So overall," Ron said, a big, happy grin on his face, "Overbearingly positive?"

"Overwhel-…" Shay started, only to be silenced as Ron leaned up to kiss her lips, falling back with a smug, teasing grin on his face.

"Gotcha!" he chuckled, earning a slap from Shay much as he would have received from Kim had she been in Shay's place, "And besides, overbearing in this case is kinda accurate, y'know?" He chuckled when Shay grumbled but nodded, before calling up to the Kimmunicator, "Hey, Wade, 's'at everything?"

"Um, yeah…" Wade was again blushing, and he swallowed slightly as he finished his commentary, "So, I'll, um, email the results in a spreadsheet with some graphs later, and work to make it a bit more readable."

"Okay, Wade," Kim said with a smile, waving at him and sitting up just enough to make it plain she was nude, while not showing him anything, "Have a good night!"

"Yeah," Shay and Ron agreed, Shay continuing with a smirk, "Maybe try and get some sleep for once tonight!"

"Yeah, right…" Ron chuckled, then raised his hand to wave at Wade again, "Laters, Wadester!"

"Goodnight, guys." Wade reached forward as if to disconnect, but paused, "Um… Should I update the relationship status on the site?"

"Doy!" Kim and Shay said as one, Shay leaning back to kiss Kim briefly, before looking back at Wade, "Good _night_, Wade!" Before he could answer, she disconnected. She glanced at Rufus and saw he was already scampering towards the kitchen, "Well, someone's already got the munchies…" The three of them laughed when Rufus let out a loud, agreeing squeak, though Shay sighed shortly afterwards and leaned fully back into Kim. "Dammit…"

"You okay, Lover?" Kim asked, gently kissing the junction of Shay's neck and shoulder.

"Yeah, just…" She sighed and looked over at Ron, a regret filled grimace slowly descending over her face, "I… I was so… Into the moment, so damn horny for_ you_, Ron, no… No negative emotions or anything! Then when Wade called, I almost felt… Guilty, but…" She glanced back and gave Kim a significant glance, before looking at Ron, pleading he didn't push for an answer, "Just… I wanna… Again, y'know? But… But I can't find… Feel… Even with…" She bit her lip and took a deep breath, shaking her head before focusing on Ron seriously, "Oh, I don't know! I'm just… I _lost_ it, the feelings I had… And now I feel like a bitch, like I was just leadin-…"

"Hey, now…" Ron objected, sitting up and reaching out to cup her cheeks gently, "Don't do that, 'kay? Am I horny? Yes. Am I gonna get blue balls?" He glanced at Kim who snickered and ground her crotch against Shay's rear, "I have a feeling that'll be a big 'No!', y'know?" Shay blushed slightly, then sighed in pleasure as Kim reached around to gently caress the outer contours of her breasts.

"I don't plan to let Ron go to waste," Kim whispered huskily, "and if you're not able to get going for Ronnie again tonight, d'you think you could for me?"

"For you, Princess?" Shay sighed, "Obviously…" She glanced down at Ron, guilt plainly visible in her eyes, "For Ron…" she squirmed against his still hard member, and while the butterflies in her stomach gave a quiver of approval, there was a sudden, oddly distant but stronger apprehension than earlier, as well, "Um… Probably not tonight? At least… Not for sex…" She blushed slightly, "I, um…_ Might _be able to do a bit more than I have before, though…"

Ron nodded at her, smiling softly and pulling her into an embrace and pressing his lips to hers. It wasn't a kiss that was filled with the shared passion from earlier, but it was still loving, deep and intense. When he broke the kiss, he pulled back enough to place his forehead against hers, and murmured, "As long as you're not forcing yourself?"

"I won't," Shay said as she shook her head, "I promise."

"Then whatever you can do, Shay." Ron leaned in slightly to give her a quick peck on the lips, then leaned to the side and gave Kim one as well.

When he broke away, Kim raised her hand and turned Shay's face to hers, and gave a kiss that was much, much closer to the one she'd shared with Ron earlier, drawing a mewling moan from the pale woman. When they broke apart, Kim whispered, "That was_ so _hot earlier… I'm still horny, but would you be okay with me doing Ronnie first?"

"Sure, um…" Shay glanced back at Ron, blushing faintly once again, "I'd like to try a bit more, er… Contact with Ron after you're done… Maybe have him touch me? If you'd be okay with trying that before you and I, well…"

"Doy…" Kim's voice was closer to normal when she spoke, but her passion and desire was still quite audible, "Didn't I say what_ almost _happened was hot? Of_ course _I'm okay with you playing with_ our _Ronnie!"

"Don't even think about asking if I object!" Ron said, earning chuckles from his fiancée and the woman who'd almost become his lover that night. Shay leaned forward again and gave him another kiss, before unfolding herself from around his torso, "But let's get some food in us first!"

"Ooo, can we use the strawberries and chocolate I saw in the fridge to play after we eat?" Kim asked, all but bouncing in place, before stopping her impromptu half dance and staring coyly at Shay, then down at Ron's still exposed, and still quite firm, erection, licking her lips in anticipation, "And, um, can you cook us up something while I…_ Take care _of Ronnie out here?"

"Doy," Shay chuckled, shaking her head fondly and reaching out to ruffle Kim's hair, earning a squawk of protest from the red-head, "such a_ needy _woman!" She pulled Kim in to give her a kiss on the top of her head. "Just don't make a mess on my couch, Princess…" Ron's eyes widened as the older woman turned her focus on him and winked as she added, "At least, not without the proper fruit and sweets…" Her eyes then narrowed in a devilish fashion, an anticipatory gleam in his eyes. A gleam that, Shay knew, was reflected in her own…

**Author's Notes**

Not much to say here, since I've already loaded the fic to the gills... Some important, less than important, and major stuff going on, and some discussions behind closed doors. And then there's Rufus and his timing... Sometimes it's a great thing! Other times? Well, that was displayed this time around quite thoroughly, methinks!

Anyway, thanks for reading! And please remember, everyone: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, have some advice or etc., give the author a review!


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's notes**

Ok, again, a li'l over my limit (about 2k words), but I was also a bit late posting... But at least this chapter ends with some action! First up, though, is the review replies, and great thanks to you guys for taking the time to review, as always!

Mystra32: honestly? Despite the fact that this scene was planned on, well, from the first day I started typin' out the fic, so was I. It always sucks when it happens - in fiction _and_ in real life - but, unfortunately, it does happen in both. But, it may very well have helped Shego get that one elusive step closer to defeating her demons! Thanks for the nod to Shego and Will's prior relationship, I was hoping that came across well. When it comes to Shego's birthday, well... That'll be explored a touch in this chapter. As to Mindbender? Well... Stick around, it's going to become evident, in some ways...

studyofchaos: hehe, as I told Mystra32, sometimes, it happens, as frustrating as it is!

Jimmy1201: yes, and maybe, of course and life is good... Perhaps... When it comes to the cockblock, well... Rufus learned a valuable lesson, there, non? And, no, no it can't last long, one way or the other...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"This is... Troubling." Professor Mindbender muttered softly, glancing out the window of Jack's private office.

Jack Hench nodded at the comment, staring back and forth between the equally troubled faces of both the Mathter and Mindbender, "It was, what, last Thursday when Gale interviewed Possible and her crew, longer since Deegan was outed as one of his?" Jack grumbled under his breath for a moment, before shaking his head in annoyance, "So seven days of nothing, and Gemini only made a move this morning? And against _me_, to steal some of _my_ company's newest designs? That's forethought and planning he hasn't really shown before. And to pull this shit on a Friday morning two hours before the evil side of the stock markets open, then announce he's stolen from me? On top of Shego being announced as not only a member of Team Possible Alpha, but both Possible and Stoppable's _girlfriend_?"

He tossed his arms out to the side, palms up, as if looking skyward in penitence as he glanced up. Then he shook his head in frustration and looked down, tabbing to another window, "And now the union's asking for a three percent raise, ten percent hazard pay raise, and a reduction of insurance deductibles from two thousand for first yearly visits to five hundred!" He sighed heavily before slumping into his high end office chair. The automatic, adaptive surface molded itself to his frame, and upon detecting his increased heart rate, began to buzz as a gentle massage moved up and down the chair's back. A moment later, he sat up a bit straighter, favoring Mindbender with his stern gaze, "It's worse than troubling; it's like a bull market becoming a bear market inside of a few hours!"

"Indeed, indeed." Mathter agreed uneasily, drawing Jack's attention as the red-head pursed his lips. He tabbed to the same page and perused the virtual paperwork in front of him for a moment, "And unfortunately, I predict a minimum of a two percent drop in the company's stock, five if you fight the union too much." A moment of thought, and his fingers moving as if he were using an abacus, later and his face relaxed slightly, "However... You _could_ turn this potential downturn into a reciprocal of one, _if_ you can enter a false sum into the market equation, Jack."

"How so?" Jack asked, glancing between his two newest advisors.

"Use Mrs. Trent of the In-Terror-Net's 'Laundry Watch' blog." Professor Mindbender said slowly, smirking slightly, "At the meeting last month, when I spoke to a few of your more legitimate customers?" Jack nodded, and Mindbender's smirk widened, "I implanted a few code words that'll allow her to believe anything you tell her!" He paused at Jack's wide eyed, hopeful stare, and added a qualifier, "Within reason, at any rate. Something believable..."

"Oh?" Jack raised his eyebrows, his nose twitching for a moment as he thought. He sat back and propped his elbows on his chair's arms, clasping his hands and steepling his index fingers, tapping them to his chin as he thought. At length, he nodded, "Something along the lines of, 'I was already planning to release the stunball focusing rings to the market next week, he merely got them early. The power coupling is highly experimental and is more likely to blow up in his face that be useful at this point, and we still have our other prototypes, as well as all the research, so nothing of real value was lost.' but leave out mention the Mark 33 Mod 1 suits. That way, with her bleating her conclusions on our side, we'll be in a good place by the end of the day." Mindbender nodded with a smile, and Jack glanced back at the Mathter, "Suggestions for the Union?"

"Give them the raises," the Mathter said bluntly, "You can easily absorb a four and twelve percent raise, respectively, and I'd suggest cutting first yearly hospital deductible by fifty percent."

"You're certain this won't be overbearing to the bottom line?" Jack asked worriedly, drawing a grimace from the Mathter.

"It will hurt a little, but not significantly. It may even result in a slight increase in hires for the henchmen's side of the business, which will in turn allow more to be hired out to each villain." The Mathter's tone was even, though his expression told of trouble coming with his next statement, "What is, unfortunately, a more significant factor is Gemini's attack and theft. The sum remains that his troops were able to slip in and out with net zero resistance; this is the driving factor that points us to a conclusion that is unavoidable." Hench looked at the Mathter, not liking the sure look on the face of the former full time villain, now one of the businessman's more trusted advisors. "Essentially, we believe that there is a coefficient of collusion within your organization, Mr. Hench."

"I was afraid of that when I heard the news this morning." Jack sighed as he once again picked up the Ultra-SecureBook tablet computer and looked back over the ledgers, journals, manifests and security logs with footage that the two men had brought in with them. "Two things... Right here," he pointed at a 'Code Three-Charlie-Alpha' at his research facility, which had been declared literally minutes after shift change lockdown. The code was a silent response intruder alert alarm, one that brought over ninety percent of the facility's security personnel to a wall breach that was quite real, but not particularly well supported.

"This was obviously a diversion, yet they were able to push through most of the facility security despite the odds, while others obviously got what they wanted from me without setting off any alarms or being seen on camera! Any word on how they did this? Was it collusion from the inside?" Not that it had mattered, of course. Those performing the breach were wearing what at first appeared to be his company's new Class H, Mark 32 Mod 3 henchmen suits. The only real noticeable changes were the solid armor protecting sections of the chest, knees, elbows and shoulders, as well as a full face helmet instead of his normal open chin design and a raised section around the neck. Jack figured the only real sensitive points, outside of heavy firepower of course, would be if someone managed to get something like a stungun or specific martial arts moves down between the neck guard and helmet.

Based on Lorwardian battle armor, the exterior material was thinner than the old suits, yet offered _far_ more protection. He'd also had his designers make a heavy version, both of which Gemini had taken during his last purchase from HenchCo and modified further, if the camera footage was any indication. "To be blunt, Jack," Mindbender sighed, "Gemini's Delta Squad was just plain superior to anyone that was on site."

"Ah, Gemini's infamous Deltas..." Jack nodded in annoyance as he realized something he should have earlier, "I've tried to get Tripe on my payroll for a few years now..."

"She seems to be a believer in Gemini's work," Mindbender declared, "As in, a 'true believer'. Almost religiously devoted to the madman... Unfortunately, she's also _incredible_ at her job... Somehow, she secured the escape of fifteen of her best agents from GJ's holding facility. She left the rest with the henches that Gemini hired for the lair in Denver." He pointed at a few of the men in the still Jack was looking at, "These, I think, are the Thetas the rumor mill says Tripe picked up, while these," he pointed at another few individuals, "are from her original Deltas. Notice, the Thetas seem to be keeping up..."

"Yes..." Jack nodded, pondering something for a moment before continuing, "A third point just occurred to me, but my second point was a question, about how you called them 'troops'; why, exactly?"

"Because they're Deltas, mainly," the Mathter commented, "also due to the militaristic efficiency by which they solved the problem presented by the facility. They seem to have factored everything in that a good researcher could find, but they also managed to factor in variables that should not have been part of their initial equation."

"Thus our conclusion of an insider feeding them information." Mindbender added, frowning slightly as he picked up his own U-SB tablet and brought up a current feed from the facility, "_Recent_ information, to boot. Unfortunately, whoever the mole or spy is or was is either no longer among the facility staff..."

"Or doesn't know he or she is a mole." Jack nodded, "That's my third point. I know you have a devilishly smooth way of drawing information from people, Professor, and if _you_ were unable to get anything from them..."

"You believe that the mole is still on staff at the facility?" Mathter asked, his hands again moving like he held an abacus when Hench nodded. A moment later, he blinked and nodded, "I calculate an eighty-two point seven percent chance that the mole is mind controlled; of that, there is a twenty-two percent chance of an actual mole from Gemini's organization or from something like the CIA, ATF or etcetera, forty-three point three-three percent chance in a manner similar to the Professor, coercion or similar techniques, ninety-three point seven-seven-five percent by technological means."

"Brotherson?" Jack asked vaguely, his mind elsewhere as he thought about various friendly competitors and close allies, "No, that'd hurt him too much... You mentioned alphabets, so... GJ? CIA? MI6? SVR? Mossad?"

"It..." Professor Mindbender paused, as if thinking of a less painful way to say what was on his mind. At length, he sighed and shook his head, "No alphabets to our knowledge in that facility... As to the facility staff, I have suspicions on at least three of the security agents, and two of the scientists. There was something... Off about them, but considering that my specialty is coercion, I have to say that any actions against the company were completely unwitting on their parts... If we can find and short out, or better yet, _use_ the technology..."

"Yes, yes..." Jack nodded, closing his eyes, considering that he was rather... Worried. He was worth billions, and his empire far more than that... If he were caught out, unawares by any competitor or an agency he may have unknowingly snubbed? After all, he had many, many contracts for lai-... Rather, _underground facilities_, for the discerning governmental types, as well... His eyes snapped open, having reached a decision. Reaching out, he tapped the intercom button, "Alice, get me Baten Downe, I need him in my office ASAP!" He turned to Professor Mindbender, "Has Mr. Downe been properly vetted?"

"Yes, using the reverse engineered Truth Ray mark III." Mindbender nodded, "He's clean."

Jack turned and looked out of the window to his private suite, sighing heavily as he stared out across the waters of the Great Salt Lake. "Okay, when he gets in here, I want you two and him to go about vetting the rest of the on-site security, bring everyone not in the hospital in, even those on vacation or on days off. After they're vetted and proven safe or otherwise, start turning the corporate HQ over with a fine toothed comb; I want _any_ kind of eavesdropping devices found! After that's done, re-vet rest of the board..." He turned briefly to his newest advisors, "I do suggest monitoring separately from Mr. Downe, as the rest of the board can be rather pugnacious; with you being the so-called new blood, seeing you helping Mr. Downe will cause a confrontation I don't need with this shit happening!"

He took a breath and sighed, glancing back at the glow of Go City, including Go Tower, reflecting back at him in the early morning sun, "After the board's cleared - or any collusion with the competition is discovered - start in on the rest of the people here at the HQ, then over in Go City at the research facilities and get everyone. And I mean _everyone_; from my top scientists, all the way down to the part time evil interns and the immigrants doing janitorial!" That brought a grim chuckle from the three men, however briefly it was. Their faces fell quickly back into their masks of concern, "Of course, once they're properly vetted as safe, I'll want you three to go out and start with my other branches within HenchCo; when that's done, I want you to move on to Hench Heavy Construction and Building, L.L.C., J&B Securities, etcetera, same deal."

"Start with the core business and move out concentrically." the Mathter nodded, "A very rational equation, if time consuming."

"Can't be helped." Jack shrugged, continuing with a slightly more relaxed tone than he had been using, "For any that have potential control tech on or in their persons, find out first what it is, then how to extract it if possible. If neither that or disabling is possible, then eliminate it, or retire them."

The two advisors looked positively worried, but nodded nonetheless. _They know the stakes, but are willing to stick it out._ Jack relaxed slightly, glad that his instincts and those of his head of security, Baten Downe, was correct. He smiled slightly, pleased that Baten hadn't been one of the guilty parties; a half-Arabic, half-British security expert even before he'd joined HenchCo that had been with Jack for over two decades. He was not only Jack's head of security, he was trustworthy, dedicated, and a close friend and confidant, something exceedingly rare in the business Jack had chosen for his life... And to top it off, Baten had been the man to personally determine for Jack that the new, improved Mathter and the up-and-coming Professor Mindbender were boons for the company. Those three together should be able to vet and clear any of his people guilty of unintentional collusion... Or find any moles that were voluntary.

Unfortunately, he may be forced to 'retire' somepeople in the old Mafia style over this. He didn't want to, but frankly, what was done was done, and need beats want every time. After all, one couldn't be _too_ careful...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Well, that's that." Deegan Tripe, WWEE Agent Delta, declared with supreme satisfaction as she supervised the latest operation's preparations. The easy comment drew the attention of Elsie Compton, Delta Squad's second agent, from the plans of action on her tablet computer's screen, and back out on the old, WWEE built lair. Thanks to Gemini's machinations, and the work Elsie had done in modifying Deegan's original plan, Deegan had managed to slip out fifteen of the best from her original Delta Squad. She'd been right to grab the ones she had, too, if the raid on one of Jack Hench's north Denver lab was any indication. Not only had they slipped into the new command structure perfectly, leading those that needed it, the NCOs did what NCOs had done since time immemorial: train 'officer' types to be just that. "Delta Three, how does our schedule look?"

"Ahead by about five percent, ma'am!" Delta Three exclaimed, drawing another nod of satisfaction from the best infiltration leader the WWEE had, at least to Elsie's eyes.

"Keep it up," Deegan nodded, "Gemini wants us to be on this within the hour." The faux brunette turned and gave Elsie a secret smile that she rarely used outside of the privacy of their shared quarters.

Elsie fought the urge to sigh as her best friend since college continued on her work. The relatively plain, but incredibly well organized woman, had been Deegan's choice for second spot ever since she'd been promoted to a full agent, back when she was 'merely' Agent Zeta. Which had been what Elsie, and her employer, had hoped.

The fact that Elsie had fought being 'drafted' into the WWEE had made her eventual joining of the organization all the more convincing. Unfortunately, some of what was troubling Agent Delta Two was just that; she was honestly hoping to get Deegan to quit the WWEE before it all came crashing down, but with their current objectives? Gemini was pushing how far down Deegan was falling, and there was only so far she could pull her friend back up... _I hope this works out for the best..._

"El?" Deegan called out, snapping Elsie from her reverie. Being her best friend, she could tell when Elsie was troubled, just as Elsie could read Deegan's moods. Walking over, the lead agent took a seat close by, bringing her own tablet computer up to glance over their latest orders herself, but murmured softly, "What's wrong, Elsie?"

Elsie's troubled look was made more noticeable by the slight grimace the question engendered. "This won't be easy with the number of agents we have to call on, Deeg..." she murmured just as softly, "A three pronged attack - two thefts _and_ a kidnapping - all to get that monstrosity Gemini's been working on for years up and running? When making it work is barely a fifty-fifty chance, even _with_ the Lorwardian tech? And the kidnapping is _just_ a distraction?" Elsie sighed and shook her head, "That's not good odds, even for _us_! _Especially_ considering just _who_ we'r-..."

"Don't worry so much." Deegan smiled with unfeigned assurance, "We've got this. The graphene conductor spool will probably be the most difficult, considering the location..."

"You _do_ know how heavily protected those two are, right?" Elsie pressed, bringing up a schematic of a home, "_Shego_ and _Falsetto Jones_ would have had trouble breaking in there, and we can't even hire them, considering that they've gone hero! And grabbing our targets _after_ leaving is almost as bad, considering that there's at least four alphabet agencies watching over them at any given time..."

"It's all been taken into consideration." Deegan assured her, then dropped her voice even more, "We have two distractions to help us. One's a full blown villain, though she doesn't know she's working for _us_, and we've been given access to a group of honest-to-God ninja thanks to Agent Alpha... They're _both_ going to lead suspicion away from us before we strike, and when we do?" She closed her hand, making a fist so tight the knuckles were white, "The trap is sprung, and we have you-know-who by the short and curlies."

"I hope you're right..." Elsie sighed softly, tapping her screen and bringing up a set of pictures, "I mean, you _saw_ what _those_ two could do! And besides them, there's _these_ five, and _they_ worry me even _more_! She's nearly as good as Kim Possible, and _those_ three are doing amazingly well withou-..."

"We're ready to move, ma'am!" Delta Three called out, drawing Deegan and Elsie's attention from their discussion.

"Very good!" Deegan called out, turning back to Elsie, "El, don't worry about it, okay? We'll be in and out of the MSC Upperton warehouse within the hour, barring any unforeseen interference." That said, she turned and began barking orders at her Deltas, missing the brief, pained look in Elsie's eyes.

"I hope you're right..." Elsie murmured softly, tapping the side of the device in a specific manner that looked like a nervous habit. This activated a specific piece of software and hardware that Jack Hench would, likely, kill to have. She caught the small icon of Global Justice - a Swiss heraldic shield in deep blue bordered by gold, with a gauntleted, silver fist angled from her left to right holding a golden balance scale - and knew the information was sent. An instant later, she shut the machine shut down.

Twenty miles away in a computer lab belonging to Porter, Lipsky and Load, L.L.C., one of several computers at a workstation beeped. Sitting at the keyboard of that workstation, a young man smiled in as sinister fashion a thirteen year old boy could, whispering, "Bingo!"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

_This is _so_ weird..._ Shay squealed mentally, barely repressing the urge to do so aloud. She paused at the top steps of her Amsterdam apartment, looking around the expansive space with relish. The place had always been a personal preference of hers, but the last two weeks had made it even better. _Especially_ the last week! Her birthday had gone, well... Even if she'd revealed the rather embarrassing fact that she'd dated the formerly stiff as a board Will Du, and his request that they meet with the _real_ Betty Director the following day... It amazed her how well the day had gone. For years, she'd loathed her birthday, to the point of considering it 'just another day'. Too many memories, the likelihood that, even if someone remembered, that their gifts would annoy her, or just leave her feeling empty as she remembered other birthdays, more... Meaningful ones. And yet, these two teens had given her the best birthday she'd had in over half a decade. The CDs had been a relatively simple gift, but they'd obviously put careful thought into them... The card, while simple, had that beautiful, meaningful poem, and the orchids? The _cake_? It all suited her so _perfectly_! It showed just how much they loved her, that they'd make her first birthday with them mean so much... She couldn't help the soft chuckle as she turned from the upstairs railing, balancing the snacks on the tray she held for her lover and their boyfriend.

_Boyfriend..._ she enthused silently, shivering in delight and biting her lip as memories flew through her mind. They had yet to have another moment quite like the one the prior Saturday, where a simple, tickling little kiss almost led to her and Ron making love. She and Ron _had_ come close the following day, but that had been... A different situation altogether. But, other than that, she just hadn't worked up the need for him again, as yet; and not for lack of trying on her part, either! Not that she was _pushing_, exactly, but she was... Feeling out her exact boundaries, she guessed. When it came to having sex with a man she'd fallen for, it had always been something that was just plain difficult for her before... It was something that still confused her, and that she wished she could overcome as easily as she did when she fell in love with women! But if it had been bad before Will, it had become essentially impossible after that annoying, condescending, oh-so-frustrating voice had come into her life! But, since it had remained _quiet_ since its last outburst while helping Mr. Achterkamp and Vincentie Balisteri, she was hopeful she could finally start down the road to making love to Ron in all the ways she truly wanted to.

She'd been surprised to find out that, with her having been in the hospital for a week and their public coming out as a trio, that Ron's boss had called to tell him to take as much time as he needed to get things settled. Apparently the blond's boss was a hopeless romantic, and he'd called to basically order Ron to get his relationship on complete and sure footing... Or else!

The thoughts of the prior week drew a short lived chuckle from Shay, before the meeting with Betty Director and Will Du the prior Sunday. They'd also spoken to Wade via remote, the Clockwork Knight and his partner, Diebfluch, the Upperclassmen, and in seeming irony, JJ and TJ, representing their combined GJ and US Army platoon, and Ron had called in Yori, who had still been in Amsterdam with Motor Ed to finalize the business dealings with Mr. Markus. The meeting had helped the trio and Rufus decide on their next stop in the European tour and vacation they were all taking together. _Paris, shopping with Junior and Bonnie on Junior's dime?_ Shay smirked briefly... Then the meeting proper settled into her distracted mind.

Betty's news had been... Well, completely unexpected was somehow an understatement. _Camille Léon's _really_ stepped up to the big leagues..._ Shay sighed at the thought, a troubled grimace clouding her joy. Léon, in Betty's skin, working with Gemini... And to top it off, somehow, some _way_, that Lorwardian bitch had survived. Whether Léon was going to use her, or already had, was unknown... Ron's fearful, fretting worry had almost led to their making love when they got home from the meeting, but he'd stopped her... It'd hurt when he did so, as she'd felt an almost overwhelming need to be with him in every way, to help him... But, ultimately, he'd been right to stop her; as much as she'd wanted to, she _would_ have been forcing herself to do it, unlike what had nearly happened Saturday... By only the barest of margins, but forcing herself was still forcing herself...

That said, they'd managed a lot of _other_ things, sexually and just romantically. Pretty much every thing else with Ron had become as second nature with Shay as they were with Kim. Kissing, hugging, minor touches all the way to more sensual contact... _Those_ were the overwhelming reason she was glad she seemed to be overcoming this... Issue of hers. From Kim, any of it, the kisses, the hugs, even light caresses to the arm, cheek or back... It was like feeling a breeze caress her on a warm summer day. Bright, satisfying, easy to accept and enjoy, fulfilling without being overbearing and playful all at once. From the red-head, they were essentially an extension of herself, and how she viewed the world, and they transferred that aspect of herself to whoever she touched romantically; uncompromising optimism, caring, love of self and, of course, the love the heroine felt for Ron and Shay both passed through with crystal clarity. The more sensual contact merely changed the timbre, but the emotions, the _feelings_, still came through clearly.

With Ron... It was different from that. Not worse, not better, but most distinctly _different_ from their red-headed lover. She'd seen his touch with friends when she was Miss Go; back slaps to Felix, some of the football team among the boys. The friendly pats on the shoulder or arm, touches to the back with his close female friends such as Monique. But with Kim, and, now, with her, the simple touches were _so_ different. Unlike Kim, each action held a different sensation with it, all of them good. A hug was like a warm blanket on a cool day, _comforting_ but not _clingy_... His kisses all seemed to have different meanings. A light peck to the cheek or lips was much like any of Kim's attention, but a more serious kiss, whether passionate or teasingly soft, was a promise of his love, his desire and so much more.

His touches, especially when they were more along the lines of a caress? They were so, _so_ different from Kim's. Not _better_, obviously, but different in the best possible way... The soft, almost feminine contact was enough to raise goosebumps most of the time. They also, somehow, assured her that he found her beautiful, desirable on such a deep level it was incomprehensible. They were a gentle claim he laid upon her, yet they gave certainty that she was free, not bound to him by any chains but those that she herself set to tie them together. She was free to choose to accept his claim of her or discard it, and he promised to accept either decision.

It was a confused near-contradiction that she had only figured out earlier that night. What she felt was not an impression, but a _promise_ that his love for her was soul deep within him, and he made that known with every single gesture towards _her_, every bit as much as he did with _Kim_. It was startlingly new to her, as not even Harley had said so much in so simple a form. She didn't understand it, she was completely unable to comprehend _how_ such a thing could be, but it was, and it made her feel more giddy than anyone else ever had... Aside from their Kimmie, of course!

She was so deep in her thoughts that she was honestly startled when she went into their bedroom and saw what was happening. She felt that familiar, once worrying, now delicious shiver at the sight of Kim and Ron making love. She let out a small, content sigh as she set the sliced fruits down on the dresser in their bedroom, happy to stare at them for a while. The first time she'd seen it, she'd been incredibly aroused... The next several times, she was aroused, but troubled; not jealous, per se, but not happy about it by any stretch of the imagination.

Now, she again felt that arousal as she watched Kim slowly grind herself against Ron, the blond groaning with closed eyes as Kim slowly slid up and down. Shay knew that the red-head was carefully clamping with her muscles in a smooth internal roll as she raised herself up and dropped herself down, all to draw the pleasure out as long as she could. She felt proud of herself for helping her Kimmie perfect that... It was something she wanted to do with Ron when they were finally... Together... Like that, but, until then...

_Kimmie's right,_ Shay thought as she swallowed at the sight, _that is _so_hot!_ With obvious reluctance, she called out to them, "Hey, foods on the dresser... I'm going to clean up a little... There's still chocolate in places I don't remember it going!"

"Okay!" Kim called out, leaning back in an incredibly erotic display of flexibility, her body's movement changing from slow circles to a smooth, slightly vertical undulation... All while bending over backwards with a languid stretch that put her shoulders on the bed, all to give Shay an upside down smirk, "Leave me some hot water?"

"Doy?" Shay teased, rolling her eyes and shaking her head, "Don't worry, Princess..." The older woman then gave her lover a positively evil smile, "Of course, if you finish Ronnie off soon enough, you guys can join me!"

Kim let out an excited little squeak, and Shay's challenge obviously caught Ron's attention. He gulped audibly, and glanced over at Kim as she pulled herself back upright... With a look of determination on her face. "You trying to kill me, Shay?"

Shay chuckled darkly at the faux protest, purring out, "If you can't stand the heat, Doofus..."

"Oh, he'll stand it..." Kim promised, then moaned as Ron startled them both by taking the initiative, his hips pumping in that oh-so-familiar manner, "Hngh, Ronnie..."

Shay watched them for a moment more, licking her lips in anticipation... Whereupon she felt something between her teeth. Blushing, she pulled the hair out from between those two teeth and walked to the bathroom, Kim's plaintive, sensual cries following her. She shook her head in amusement, throwing it in the bathroom trash. _Need to get that boy to trim more often..._ she thought with a light giggle, _And _that's_ something I'm glad I've managed to do with him... Princess has him pretty well trained on _giving_... And he's patient enough to let me do my thing with him while _receiving_..._ She snorted, shaking her head in mild, self-directed disgust and annoyance,_ I just can't believe I let this shit fester in me..._ _Took me long enough to admit it, but I should've just ignored that friggin' voice from the start..._

She ran her fingers down her body, shivering slightly as she remembered what she'd done with the blond earlier that night. The thoughts drew a slow, sensual chuckle from her, her eyes darkening in aroused delight. Oral sex, especially felatio, was something she loved; receiving oral was a guaranteed orgasm, and giving? Giving head to a man or woman was the only way she'd _ever_ orgasmed without any erotic touching. She knew that she was a bit weird in that department... Even Kim, who enjoyed giving oral sex to both Shay and Ron, wasn't as enthusiastic as Shay was.

But it was the way she was wired. The feeling of control, of holding someone's center of ultimate pleasure - that could be used to cause immense pain - under her power... It was heady, intense, so undeniably _arousing_... She _could_ hurt someone if she desired it, or she could bring them such intense pleasure, and with her skill, rather _quickly_ at that... Or she could hold off on it, drawing out the pleasure to almost torturous extremes... And when she was receiving, to feel next to helpless, subject to her partner's whim? While she couldn't handle the whole bondage thing, she loved the slight out-of-control feeling that receiving oral sex gave her... And to have such a thoughtful boyfriend and girlfriend to give it to her, to receive it _from_ her? To have a boyfriend and girlfriend that were as _responsive_ to her touch as Kim and Ron were? It was a godsend of erotic delight to the superpowered woman. _In fact, _she thought with an odd sense of relish,_ I'm pretty sure I freaked them both out a bit that first night, after Ronnie and I almost did it..._

She let out a sighing breath as she thought back to that night. The feel, for the first time in _far_ too long, of a man in her mouth... The texture, the taste of his natural self with Kimmie's juices still fresh... The subtle quiver whenever she used a little bit of force from her tongue on his glans... His taste when he came, undisguised by Kimmie's own flavor thanks to several minutes of Shay's ministrations, was delightful: salty, antiseptic, yet fresh and undeniably masculine. And she'd enjoyed that taste several times since!

The memory of his taste, especially the masculine aspect of it, brought her back to one of the more amusing Internet posts about their relationship. It was one from the negative side of things, but it had tickled both her and Princess to no end, and even Ron had agreed to the humor when they'd explained it! The poster had wondered if it wasn't a two-top lesbian threesome, because Ron was obviously the girl of the relationship. _They can claim Ron's not a man all they want,_ Shay smirked, _Kimmie and I _definitely_ know otherwise!_

_Oh, I don't know, _Shego_..._ the familiar, and oh-so-unwelcome voice, one that Shay had dreaded for years but had almost completely forgotten about over the last week, spoke up, _I think the woman might've had a point! Your _Ronnie_ has a _lot_ of things softer about him than your precious _Kimmie_ does!_ Shay was dumbstruck by the reappearance of the voice... So much so that, for a moment, she thought she saw the mental representation she'd always associated with it standing behind her... Could almost _feel_ the fingers running along her shoulders, down her arms, and around to tease at the outer edge of her breasts, _Y'know, I could _almost_ believe they actually _do_ love you, Shego!_

_Oh, they do..._ Shay mentally hissed at the voice, her face briefly scowling at the reflection in the mirror, _There's absolutely _no_ doubt in my mind about that! They've risked letting me into their hearts, enough that they don't care who in the world knows about it!_

_But do you care if the world knows?_ the voice prodded, _Or are you scared that the world will... Discover... Just how much you want to whore yourself to that spoiled, born-with-a-silver-spoon-in-her-mouth bitch and her pet loser, hmmm?_ The voice let out a sinister chuckle, _And _then_ you have the gall to claim you can _feel_ your precious Ronnie's love when he touches you? Something that never happened even when you were with your precious, _dead_ Harley? Hmmm?_

_Yes,_ Shay declared simply, _because that's the truth! We all love each other, and I declared my love for them at the same time, in the same way! So how 'bout this one: you go off somewhere, _eat shit_ and _die_!_

_I see that you're not denying whoring yourself out to them, though, eh, Shego? _the voice commented as if deep in thought, obviously ignoring her acerbic order,_ But I'll bet you didn't bother to notice Kimmie's reaction when the little pest dropped in last Saturday night, hmmm? How she pulled straight back from you? Doesn't seem like she wanted to be too close to the woman about to screw _her_ man! _A brief pause from the voice was followed by another of its chuckles, _Of course, with you falling on top of her, Li'l Kimmie didn't really have much choice but to stay there, hmmm?_

Shay was taken aback by the blunt implications the voice threw out. So startled, in fact, that she remembered the moment with striking clarity. Ron had jumped, but only his chest and up had moved... Then she'd jumped, falling backwards... But almost rolling diagonally off of the couch, _away_ from Rufus! As if he could have been an enemy striking... She'd changed directions while her legs were still on the couch falling into Kimmie... And Kim had done the same thing as her, but fallen onto the other arm of the couch!

A triumphant cackle echoed through her mind, the emotional outburst echoed from her mouth by a positively evil snicker, _Good try, asshole, but you're _wrong_!_

_Perhaps... _the voice conceded easily... Far too easily for Shay's liking, _but let's be honest here, Shego..._ The voice's tone was almost indecently reasonable, _Not only has Ron avoided pushing the issue with you, he _also_ claims he's fine waiting on you... But, really, how many men are willing to wait that long for a woman to decide she wants to screw them?_

_Harley did,_ Shay countered, _and don't try that, 'They're so similar!' bullshit with me anymore! They've got similarities, yes... They're both goofballs, in good shape, cute but not particularly handsome... But they're _so_ different on _so_ many levels! And Will's another man that was willing to wait, as long as it took, and _you_ know it as well as _I_ do!_

_So you're going to throw away your love on a blond _moron_ that almost no one remembers, even _after_ he saved the world single-handedly?_ The voice made a disgusting sound, raising in volume with every word, lashing across her mind in a barely coherent roar, _At least that Army putz you almost married _earned_ your love, and _he_ had it _first_! You'll _never_ be able to marry your precious waste of a boy, your precious _Ronnie_, so long as he's with Kimmie!_

_Ron's earned it, too, every bit as much as Harley did._ Shay growled dangerously, _And, yes, Harley was my first love and yes, I'll _always_ love him... But Ronnie? He gives me... Something... That not even Harley did, just like Kimmie gives me something _Vivi_ never could..._ The voice, was now screaming at her, and more importantly to her, was no longer visible in the mirror. Even so, she could picture it foaming at the mouth, spittle flying in every direction... And she could almost, _almost_ see the shape of the face behind her own stolen visage... Then, suddenly, her own visage, the one she'd so often seen in her mind's eye, began to fade. As it did so, his final comment echoed throughout her mind, and she smirked, shrugging both mentally and physically, _As for marriage... It'd be nice to have it all official, but we might just have a commitment ceremony for our families... And that's _more_ than good enough for me!_

The voice's volume rose once again, and as her visage continued to fade, Shay felt something... Odd... It was an almost audible snap, much like the sound of scored glass when she gave the glass a crisp tap to complete the break... The sensation of snapping went deep in her mind, making her blink as her very vision was affected, her eyes crossing slightly and everything doubling for a moment. It was followed by a thankfully brief, but maddeningly intense stab of pain, making her reach out for the sink to steady herself and swallow against the urge to vomit and pass out at the same time. It was almost as if a four alarm bender's hangover had washed over her in a few seconds. That seemed to have done the trick, as her vision cleared and focused... And the voice's raving was just... Gone...

In its place, there was a... Different presence. It was almost like a small patch of fog, thick and cloying, but confined, no longer able to move about her mind freely... As if no longer able to affect her mind as it had while wearing her image as a shroud. From within that cloud, vague, incandescent sparks flared and moved, but one thing remained. A pair of eyes, so dark they almost shined in their malignance, were staring at her with sharp hatred. _You..._ the voice had changed, becoming an unsettling mix of androgynously high pitched and a deep basso, the latter so _tantalizingly_ familiar that a name was on the tip of Shay's tongue, but still _just_ out of reach. _You _will_ regret this..._ The voice promised with grim portent, _When they tire of you and cast you aside, or when _you_ get one of _them_ killed, you'll remember this... You'll remember when there's protestors outside of their home, decrying how Team Possible shouldn't have taken in such a worthless slut and criminal, how you've _ruined_ them... You'll remember this, and you'll remember how I tried to... Save you... And save _them_, the people you think you love _so_ much..._

Shay smirked at the words. Finally, she could feel that voice's iron clad control on her slipping. It wasn't gone, not completely, but... _She_ had control back! _She_ was free of the physically overwhelming urge to listen to the voice or suffer nausea, fear, worry, _pain_ as she sometimes had... And she knew that, with time, the voice would be a thing of the past. Narrowing her eyes, she sent a stab of thought at the internal beast that had haunted her for so long, _You're losing ground, whatever you are... And _I'm_ back in control... I'll do things _my_ way from now on, hear me? You have no power over me, and I'll wait and push and wait and _push some more_... And when I _finally_ drive you out of my head, I'll know just who you were that put this into my head... And then? I'll come looking for you, to pay you back for years of abuse..._

_We shall see, Shego..._ the voice, suddenly, seemed almost good natured, even chipper, _We shall see..._

The last change in the voice troubled Shay for all of three seconds. Then two sets of arms, one slender, athletic and feminine, and one set a bit muscular, with big hands and obviously masculine, were sliding around her. "You okay, Lover?" Kim asked from her right, her arms wrapping around Shay's waist. The older woman unconsciously lifted her right arm and settled it around Kim's shoulders, murmuring a wordless acknowledgement to the red-head's question.

"You sure?" Ron whispered from her left, giving her a goosebump raising kiss below that ear, his arms sliding around the pale woman's shoulders even as she snaked her left arm around his waist.

"Ronnie..." Shay protested, shivering as the kiss gave the faintest sensation of tickling, before turning to give first Ron, then Kim, light kisses on the lips. With a sigh, seeing Ron's concerned pursing of his lips and Kim's worried, borderline pouting frown, she huffed an almost relieved sounding exhalation and smiled, gazing at them via their reflections. "Seriously, nothing's wrong... In fact..." She turned to Ron and gave him a slow, deep kiss, before pulling back to murmur, "Everything's better than it has been since we first started this... This sitch of ours."

She turned to see Kim mock pouting, this time trying to make it look like she was seriously perturbed, which earned the red-head the same kiss Shay had just given Ron. "Love you guys..."

Kim and Ron's faces lit up at the simple declaration, and they pulled themselves closer to her, murmuring at the same time, "Love you too, Shay..."

Shay let out a low hum of contentment as her lovers squeezed her, returning their hug with equal feeling. _Whatever you are..._ she thought at the now silent voice, _No, _who_ever you are... You no longer have any say in my feelings, what I'll do or _when_! I'm with two people who love me, who I love in return, and I'll share myself with them, completely, when I'm damn good and ready and you'll have nothing, _nothing_ to say about it! You hear me? I'm free of your influence, you bastard!_

There was a moment of silence, before a gruff harrumph of amusement echoed in the back of her mind, followed by the cocksure tone of someone who believed they would ultimately win. _As I said, _Shego_, dear, misguided girl that you are, _the voice chuckled before falling silent,_ we shall see..._ With that, Shay felt a subtle pressure lift from her mind, felt her body relax, the warmth of her loves seeping into her very being. Inside her mind was the calm nothingness left behind by the voice, filled with her own feelings... It was such a foreign sensation she almost felt like crying, but held back the tears.

After a moment of enjoying Kim and Ron's touch, she relaxed her arms and pulled back, looking at Ron with a slow blush creeping up her neck. "Ronnie?"

"Yeah, Shay?" he responded, still tracing soft kisses along her neck, just below the line of the pale woman's scalp.

"I know I've asked this before, but... Since last week, um... Things've started settling in my mind, so... Um..." Shay's voice broke slightly in shy nervousness, but not that borne of disgust or fear, but out of the same kind of anxiety she'd felt when she'd first spoken to Harley about making love. After a swallow, her voice was stronger, less quavering, but no less shy, "I hate sounding like a broken record, Sport, but... You're still okay with waiting for me? To be ready for _that_ with you?"

"Of course!" Ron chuckled, giving her a slightly tighter squeeze before continuing, "I waited for over a year for Kim after we started dating, and would've waited however much longer it'd taken. I'd be a huge asshole if I didn't offer you the same courtesy, right?"

"Yeah, I guess..." She licked her lips and her lips quirked briefly, "I'm not ready yet, but... Soon... I promise." She paused and winked at him, "_Especially_ if last Saturday was any indication!" That drew a chuckle from all three of them, and then a wicked smirk slid into place as she glanced back and forth at them, "So, I take it that shared shower sounded too good to pass up?"

"You're darn right it does!" Kim stated firmly, drawing laughter from both of her lovers. The reaction made Kim blush and she glanced down, biting her lip so cutely that Shay felt as if her heart were about to burst.

"Pumpkin..." Shay whispered, smiling softly at the heroine before lifting her chin and adding, "You're just _too_ cute when you blush..." Before Kim could argue, she leaned forward and trapped the younger woman's lips with hers, while Ron began to kiss along the back of her neck and shoulders. _This is..._ the security consultant sighed as Kim responded to the kiss, sliding her fingers up and down Shay's side with unexpected gentleness, _This is _so_ perfect..._

It took almost an hour before they entered the shower...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Wha'd'we got, Wade?" Joss asked as she and Felix prepared to drop out of of one of Kim's rides, the jet owned by Bernice.

"Tripe is planning to steal a bunch of things from the Middleton Space Center and kidnap someone," he started, before his face became grim, "I already have Team Go on scene, what you're doing is covering the kidnapping..."

"No big, Wade," Joss said with slight confusion in her tone, "but why're _we_ coverin' th' kidnappin'? Wouldn' Team Go-..."

"Because she's hired Adrena Lynn and Ollie McTwist to act as cat's paws," Wade interrupted with an apologetic smile, "and they're supposed to grab their targets at MIST... After that, Tripe's supposed to grab them from Lynn and McTwist."

"What are the targets?" Felix asked, his tone obviously worried when Wade left out just what it was.

"Not _what_ so much as _who_," Wade supplied in a worried tone, "they're apparently after Jim and Tim."

"_What?_" Joss exclaimed, her voice painfully loud to both Felix and Wade over the headsets they wore, "Ima take th't chicken shit, ball poundin' bitch _down_ if she so much 's _looks_ at Jimmy 'n' Timmy! She thinks she's all that an' a box'a Cracker Jack-..."

"Joss, chill!" Felix snapped, Wade smoothly interjecting to keep Joss quiet... And hopefully calm.

"Yeah," Wade agreed with a smile, despite the mix of worry and annoyance he felt with Joss' outburst. It was almost like dealing with Kim early on! Shaking his head slightly at that little observation, he let his smile widen as Joss looked back at him, her eyes narrowed slightly, "We've warned those two and the Drs. Possible what may be coming and that's why we're sending you in! Besides which, I contacted Will secretly, and he has Team Impossible on campus as backup. Plus, I have campus security and cops on standby and the Middleton Sheriff's department has officers close by to keep from arousing suspicions..."

"Big Dipper's Doughnut Shack?" Felix snorted, earning a slight wince from Wade.

"Well," Wade looked embarrassed as he defended himself, "people will buy that many cops being at a place, won't they?"

"Probably..." Felix chuckled, glancing at Joss, "Good enough, Love?"

"Well, yeah, I guess." Joss huffed, crossing her arms over her ample chest, "Ima still beat that rancid bitch down jus' for _thinkin'_ 'bout it." She made a fist with her left hand, staring at it for a moment, "Y'all _don' mess_ with the Possibles!"

"Just make sure she's doin' something that'll require that, Joss..." Felix cautioned as they approached the drop point over the Middleton Institute of Science and Technology.

"You kids ready to drop?" Bernice called back before Joss could say a word, drawing their attention forward.

"Yes, ma'am!" Joss called back, flushing slightly as she realized she'd started cussing in front of one of the people that gave Kim rides, "Thanks for the ride, and, um, sorry 'bout..."

"No worries, honey," Bernice chuckled, "I'm from Helena originally, and I was a Marine pilot for about ten years! Nothing I haven't heard before..."

The rear cargo hatch of the stealthy looking, blended wing body jet opened as they slowed, and with a final wave, the two teens dropped out of the back. Felix immediately activated his chair's flight mode, and they slowed even more, until they were flying at a, comparatively, leisurely one hundred and forty knots. Felix quickly nosed over towards the campus and began a rapid spiral towards the campus' main quad.

"Is that normal?" Joss asked, pointing towards three trucks, two winding their way towards the loading docks for the commissary, one towards the lab storage facility.

"Sometimes..." Wade said almost distractedly, "Hey, Joss, could you grab the binoculars that're wired to the chair?"

"Sure thing." Joss answered, glancing at them and seeing that they had a focusing ring but no power ring. She shrugged and brought them up to her eyes, quickly focusing them. , "Um, the ones going to the commissary are apparently from 'Sioux Falls Commissary Services', the one going to the lab storage is labl-..." Joss paused, and before Wade could say anything, she blurted, "Holy shit, that's 'Twin Cities Management', the company that fronts the WWEE!" She swung the binoculars back over to the trucks and asked, "Can you zoom in with thes-..." The scene changed as the binoculars zoomed in optically, soft whirring reaching her ears despite the speed they flew, "Thanks, Wade..." She searched the truck's vinyl logo and then cursed, "They're WWEE, too! 'A subsidiary of Twin Cities Management'! Get Tea-..."

"Already on their way to the lab," Wade announced over the sounds of his typing, "Felix, can you two intercept the ones going to the commissary before they get there?"

"Already on our way!" Felix half shouted, nosing over and cutting hover power, then kicking in full thrust, making them dive like a stone. Five seconds later, he flared and kicked in the hover effect at the last second, almost letting the wheels touch down, before dropping the hoverfield altogether, "Wade, get security here, just in cas-..."

"They'll be there in thirty seconds, guys!" Wade snapped out, typing furiously away, "Middleton PD's inbound, probably forty five or a minute..."

"Hey, get that wreck outta the way!" a rather large man in the driver's side of the lead truck growled, "We got a schedu-..."

"That's Team Possible Bravo!" his co-driver snapped, then slammed his hand forward, apparently hitting something in the dash. Immediately, the boxes on the refrigerator trucks split into four to the sound of powerful hydraulic cylinders. The roof flew forward, the back and sides fell to turn into what amounted to ramps. Piled up boxes of frozen food products followed the ramps, thrown outwards by five armored men per box. "Get 'em, we'll try and find the brats!" the co-driver in the first truck screamed.

"You moron!" the driver yelled as he reached for his door handle, "We might've been able to bluff our way through!"

"I don' think so!" Joss howled in rage, driving forward as the big driver shoved his door open and started to drop out. He managed to get one leg and half of his body out before Joss leapt up and performed a spinning back kick into the door, slamming the door's edge into his face and his head back into the door's B-pillar. He dropped unconscious, but Joss was already passing him and throwing herself into the two men dashing down the ramp that used to be the cargo area's left side panel.

"You three," the co-driver of the first truck growled, glancing back at the henchmen piling along that side of the truck, "Let's take this cripple ou-..."

His order was cut off as Felix drove the hoverchair forward, slamming the reinforced front end into his gut. The chair's forward momentum was mostly stopped, and a quick jerk on the controls drew the chair fully backwards as the man flew towards the larger of the three henchmen, who had a delta symbol followed by a thirteen on his chest. The smallest of the three, Delta Five according to his uniform, grunted to the other man, Delta Seven, "Fall back with second squad!"

The other nodded and backed up, but unfortunately for him, Felix was just a tad faster. Surprising the men, he leapt from the chair and performed a forward somersault, driving an axe kick into the top of the man's head. Normally, a kick delivered to a man in the WWEE's modified Class H, Mark 32 Mod 3 henchmen suits, even if his legs were as built as his upper body, would've been painful but not debilitating. Since he'd started wearing the modified, lower body version of Kim's supersuit, Felix had been able to build up his legs to about the level of a boy as skinny as he appeared to be would have.

Combined with the supersuit, that growth gave his lower body strength that eclipsed even Joss', which made the man teeter a bit before falling into unconsciousness. He grimaced as he heard the countdown timer for the suit's power levels in his ear; that had drained the suit's movement capacitors by almost thirty percent. After the last fiasco with the damaged battery pack almost killing him, it was decided to use an induction charging system in his chair to charge a pair of supercapacitors for the suit. It wasn't a perfect solution, but it would do for now... In fact, it'd have to!

"Tango Two has free movement capability!" Delta Five called out, scrambling back as Felix's chair fell back underneath him. "Regroup and take out Possible!" Delta Five's order was acknowledged by the other three members of the second squad - including the co-driver of the second truck - as they caught up to him and all three moved to their left.

"Joss, you have company!" Felix yelled, worry tinging his voice.

"I kinna see that, Wings!" Joss hollered back, and he risked a brief glance to his right. Joss had just dropped one of the men in the heavy duty looking uniforms, literally smashing his faceplate off of its mounts, the force of her punch transferring through the plastic to his chin. The apparent driver of the second vehicle and another armored Delta were sprawled out and quite unconscious, the driver bleeding from his mouth and the armored Delta from his nose. "A li'l assist, please 'n' thank ya kindly?"

Felix chuckled at the milder version of Joss' Montana rancher accent peeking through, and decided, with the tight pack of Deltas lined up, he'd try bowling... Using his chair as the ball. He hit his thrusters at full emergency burn after a quick redirecting of the craft's nose and shot forward, right into the densest knot of five men. The eight men were preparing a rush that would have given even Kim trouble, had Felix not broken up the main knot of attackers. As he plowed over the men, it became obvious that as stout as their armor was, being struck by four hundred pounds of composite and technology moving at thirty miles per hour was still enough to hurt.

Three of them were knocked out from the initial attack - Felix hoped that's all that had happened - one fell away with an obviously broken arm, and the rest of the eight man rush scattered out of his way. That was when he deployed his secret weapon, one that Wade, via remote, and Joss had helped him install while at Slim's ranch. "Razzle-dazzle!" he yelled, and Joss startled the two men she was dealing with by diving between them. When she came up with her hands over her eyes, one of the men close to them had a clue and turned about, the rest were stunned by what happened next.

Felix screwed his eyes shut and threw his arms over his face just in the nick of time. From the top rear of his chair, two arms shot up, squealing to draw attention to themselves. The arms bore a thousand ultra-high intensity, high wattage LEDs between them. They went off in a seemingly random manner, no less than three hundred on at any one time, and averaging seven hundred and twenty. The light was so bright that it leaked through the imperfect seal his arms provided and were bright even behind his closed eyes. He briefly wondered if Joss, had she not worn gloves, would have seen her bones through her hands.

Of course, while the intensity of the light was bad enough, the _pattern_ that the lights used was what truly did the men in. Much like the Dazzler laser weapon, it was designed to disorient and confuse opponents. While it wasn't a laser weapon, the intensity of the LEDs and the patterning made up for it, leaving several of the men vomiting in their suits before falling to their knees or onto their backs. All of the men that fell seemed to suffer fits from the sensory overload, leaving them effectively incapacitated. Three of them fell unconscious outright, their senses overwhelmed by the onslaught of light.

Joss heard the warning beep that indicated the light show was over and turned about her center to do a headcount of their opponents. There was only two remaining standing out of the original fourteen, one close to her. She lashed out, just beating the one who had turned around to the punch. She launched a side kick to his right side, just below the chest protection of his suit. By his immediate drop to the ground, holding the area around his liver, she guessed she'd hit his liver pretty hard with that blow. This left him open for a quick removal of his helmet, leaving his head exposed for a perfectly placed elbow, driving him insensate to the ground.

Felix was having a bit more trouble; the henchman that he'd knocked the co-driver of the first van into had missed the light show and was a very, _very_ big man. He stood at least three inches taller and ran about one hundred pounds of muscle bigger than brick, and was fast to boot. Felix was playing a dodging game with the man, trying to get enough space to actually climb out of the fight. Felix was left hoping that he either had an opening to use the chair, leap out unexpectedly on the man, or that Joss would finish and come to his aid.

It turned out that he was offered both of the latter choices as he caught Joss removing the other Delta's helmet off. She then turned and drove a jumping, spinning hook kick towards his head. The man was quite adept at hand to hand, as he easily dodged and countered Joss' attack, almost clipping her jaw with a quick jab... A jab that would likely come close to taking the auburn haired teen's head off, considering the man's bulk. Felix used that chance to leap out of the chair and at the man, his hands reaching out to grasp the helmet. That, Felix had seen, was the suit's biggest weakness: the ease of headgear removal.

Using his powerful upper body as the prime force, and his suit powered legs as balance, he snaked an arm around the front of the helmet and grabbed the raised edge around the throat as an anchor. Twisting his head around and in front of the helmet, his body followed the twist, easily sliding the helmet to its stops before yanking up, tugging it out of its locking channel. He landed and fell flat on his rump, scuttling away as Beta Thirteen refocused on him. He was as ugly as he was big, and he must have realized he was essentially outmatched, not pursuing Felix as the teen righted himself and lept back to his chair. Felix sighed as he heard the charge indicator stop at fifteen percent and chime in with, "Charging."

To even the playing field, Beta Thirteen reached for the contoured, flexible, segmented rear shell of his suit's solid armor and yanked out two rapier-like sticks with circular hilts and fifteen inch long blades. However, in place of the blades were plastic rods with a lattice of metal just a little above flush with their surface. When the rods were away from his body he activated them. Immediately, a loud, hissing crackle emanated from them as bright blue electric sparks arcing back and forth along their lengths.

Felix knew he was in trouble, having taken it upon himself to read about some of the weapons the supervillains had started using around the time of the Lorwardian invasion and afterwards. The HenchCo Shok-Stik was one such weapon. Unlike a regular police Tasers, which generally rated at two hundred to three hundred kilovolts, or stun guns and batons, which run upwards of eight _mega_volts, the Stun-Stik could be set for upwards of _fifteen_ megavolts. The amperage could also be modified, enough to kill someone with a single jolt, though that required modifications... Modifications which the WWEE versions had. On top of that, unlike most regular stun batons, the Shok-Stiks were physically tough and durable enough to be used as close quarters combat weapons after their charges were used up.

While the chair could take a strike from one of the stun-sticks, charged or otherwise, Felix, in his vulnerable position, most decidedly could _not_! Especially when the man started swinging the sticks with alacrity. Felix was unfamiliar with martial arts in general, though he could recognize styles such as karate or Taekwon-Do as being different from Kung Fu. The style the man was using was completely different, smooth and lithe in its movements, despite the man's size. Every time one of his arms moved forward with the Shok-Stik, the other was going back in preparation of movement, the strikes snake like in their speed.

Felix did the only thing he could do: he went vertical. The move saved him from being hit by the man's strikes. He glanced down just as Joss set upon the man, her feet a flurry of movement as she threw multi-level kicks at him, while using her shirt to move his dangerously armed hands away from her. When she finally stopped moving, she took up a stance that confused Felix somewhat. She stood with her feet at ninety degrees from each other, her weight even between them. She held her shirt it in her fists, one arm up above her shoulder, the other just below her sports bra clad chest, with the towel wrapped behind her shoulder like a nunchaku. "Give it up, asshole," she growled at the man, "Or Ima break y'all's arms b'fore we're done!"

The man didn't respond verbally, merel striking at her with both Shok-Stiks flying at different levels. She brought her shirt around with both hands while at the same time lashing out with her right foot. Her rear leg swung around from right to left at the waist level of the lower strike, the foot held slightly canted to her right with the inside of her heel the striking point. She hit his right wrist, knocking his arm away, but he managed to keep ahold of his weapon. She wrapped her shirt - made from the same material that Ron, Kim, Rufus and Shego's new uniforms were made of - around the sparking tip of the Shok-Stik.

The man proved just how good he was in that moment. Using the impetus of Joss' defensive kick, the oddly named vertical kick, he swung his body in the direction Joss was attempting to wrench his left hand. The move softened the force she could use, and he easily slipped the business end of the weapon from her shirt. He continued the spin, bringing the right hand weapon around in a crackling, whistling arc towards Joss' head. She had been ready for him, continuing her spin as well and whipping her left leg up and around in a hooking maneuver.

Her leg wrapped around his right elbow, which forced him to drop his right arm and swing it down and under his left. Meanwhile, his left hand lashed out towards her head, which was barely blocked as she brought her shirt wrapped right hand up in a deflection block on the weapon proper. Even as she blocked, his right hand was snaking out straight from its backmost position, angling towards her unprotected midsection. Joss was ready, however, her left arm having dragged her shirt down and across her body, intercepting his right hand at the wrist. Before she could drop her right hand and entrap the arm, however, she was forced to pull back and away. This allowed her to duck below his already descending right hand, barely avoiding a shock that would've put her down and unconscious with body damaging convulsions.

As soon as she was out of the range of the swinging weapons, Joss skipped forward ducked down at the same time, sweeping her leg around with blurring speed. The man, having just recovered from his latest swings, didn't have time to dodge properly, so he dove forward and over her leg, falling into a forward roll while lashing out with his left hand stick. Joss was out of _his_ range, but the move kept her from moving towards him, giving the man enough time to spin and confront her with strikes from his weapon, which randomly changed in height along her body.

Luckily, her reaction time was enough to counter, duck or block each strike, either with her feet, knees, shirt or blocks away from the weapons. They traded blows back and forth in seemingly blurring speed, before both broke and separated by several feet. "Y'all're _good_..." Joss declared, an unconscious, rather grudging smile gracing her lips. The man nodded, something about his bearing mirroring Joss' sentiments.

His stance looked very stable, his feet perhaps a foot apart, with both feet pointing generally towards her. His legs were bent, his hips fairly low, with his left arm held under his right elbow and his right hand raised. His left hand's Shok-Stik was held perpendicular to the ground and pointing away from his body, while his right hand was held back over his shoulder, also perpendicular to the ground while pointing backwards. The man didn't speak, but in the sudden silence of Felix being almost twenty feet up, Joss heard voices coming over the speaker near his ear. She blinked, realizing that was a confirmation of backup he must have called in while he still had his helmet, and yelled up at Felix, "Look out for company, Wings!"

"Dammit!" Felix replied, realizing that only a few seconds had passed while they'd fought, and that, indeed, there _was_ company coming. A few almost missed, black shapes were jumping from shadow to shadow on a nearby roof, making a bee-line for Joss and Beta Thirteen. Seeing Joss and the henchman engaging once again, he dropped the chair into a forward dive, hoping his timing wasn't off or he was going to leave the both of them in deep trouble. Luckily, his timing wasn't, and the bottom of his chair brushed the man's head.

Beta Thirteen dove out of the way, but was still knocked a bit off kilter by the brushing contact. That gave Joss the opening she needed, and she brought a driving knee up just as his face passed close to her. The impact made a sound not unlike a watermelon being slapped, and the man dropped into unconsciousness.

Both she and Felix turned to prepare for the incoming ninja. They weren't remaining hidden, and seemed out of breath as they dropped to the ground near the two teens. That, however, could have had something to do with the rips and tears to their uniforms. "Seems like y'all got on th' _bad_ side'a Team Imposs'ble..." Joss said easily. She cracked her knuckles and taking a stance as she continued, "Now, y'all gonna give up, or we gonna have t' finish what TI started?"

The gray suited ninja glanced at each other and tensed as if about to run... Only to jerk their heads to their left at the sound of four subdued pops. Then they tensed, the larger of the duo letting out a chattering squeal as eight thin lines connected to four dual-barbed heads struck them. Joss' attention followed their brief gaze, leading her to spotting El Paso County Sheriff's Deputy Ryan Hobble and three other deputies, their Tasers held out and ready. "Thanks, Officer Hobble!" Felux said with palpable relief.

"It's no' a pro'lem, m'boy!" Officer Hobble called back, his Irish accent thicker than normal since he was actually involved in the action, "Jus' so ye know, though, our spot'rs tol' us they saw eight people tha' slipped past our perime'er force on tha groun' an' were bustin' in the north entr'nce!"

"Thanks, off'cer." Joss said as she jumped on Felix's lap, "Could ya get these guys trussed up fer us?"

"Shore thing, Miss Poss'ble!" Officer Hobble nodded, "Ye jest go 'n' save yir cousins, we've got these brigunds..."

Joss and Felix lifted off, heading towards the quad once again... Just as the wall in one of the Robotics classrooms exploded outwards and what looked like a cobbled together suit of armor - reminiscent of the Centurion Mark I battlesuit - flew outward from the blast. Standing in the hole left by the flying suit was Ollie McTwist, an angry scowl on his face, with a dizzy looking Adrena Lynn dragging herself to her feet behind him.

Within the suit, however, was the unconscious form of Jim Possible...

**Author's Notes**

Uh, oh! _That's_ sure not to settle well with Joss in the least! Or Felix... Though I have a feeling that will be resolved with prejudice! And... It's probably a good thing that Kim's _not_ there... And we get a chance to see that, indeed, Joss has some combat chops, although it's obvious Team Possible Bravo handles threats a bit differently than Alpha!

Shego seems to have made her stand, finally pushing the voice out of its deep hold upon her psyche... But will she win the war? At this point, it seems she will, especially with the help of her loves... Kim, with her love and determination to be there, her drive, and her willingness to go where Shego, as yet, is unable to, and Ron, with his love and the patience to wait for Shego to be ready. Can such a combination fail?

It seems Gemini, via the seemingly infamous Agent Delta, is finally making some moves. Against no less personage than Jack Hench! A dangerous move, to be sure... But which side is in the most danger? And then there's Jack, himself. Paranoia strikes deep, as the saying goes, and he's got plenty to go 'round! But the question has to be: is it paranoia when they _are_ out to get you? And he has the Mathter, who has stepped up in a big way _and_ Professor Mindbender, a 'new' villain that's seemingly 'old hat' at the business right there to help him out. It seems, then, that Jack Hench has himself stepped up his game... The question is, what will that lead to, considering his rather deep paranoia? Only time will tell...

Anyway, thanks for reading! And please remember, everyone: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, have some advice or etc., give the author a review!


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Foreword**

Hey there, everyone. Sorry for the delay, but due to real life being what it is on both myself and Neo's part, it got delayed.

Before I get on to review replies, I must make note of two things. First is more of a personal note from myself and touches on many members of the Kimmunity... Today, Friday, May 10th, 2013, is the third year since the passing of cpneb. He was, of course, a valued member of the Kimmunity, one that many considered a favorite uncle, a best friend, a father figure... Sometimes all three. He was a good friend to me and strongly reminded me of my own late uncle. He was a brilliant light cut far too short... But, for those that knew him in real life and in this nebulous place that is the Internet, still feel his smile turned upon us and hear his easy laugh in every gentle breeze.

I miss you, Old Man... All of those that knew you do... Yet, we all know you'll be waiting there on the other side, probably wearing that grin only someone with a silly little secret can, before you ask us us, "What took you so long?" I hope, sincerely, to see you again one day, my friend... And no matter how many years from now that will be, I shall not forget you, nor, I'm sure, shall anyone else that knew you. Until then, I, and everyone that knew you, will keep the hope, and the writing, alive.

Sorry for waxing (horribly, I'm sure!) poetic there, but 'Nebs was... Is... A good friend. My second note is about something that will be in this chapter - and this note will be a touch of a spoiler - this chapter has been finished since about April 25th, 3013. I was delayed up to then and the chapter was waiting for Neo to have time from her busy work and college schedule to give me her flow and feel beta. An important part of this chapter takes place in Prague, the Czech Republic and involves an attack via explosives. Unfortunately, as those who follow international news may be aware, on April 29th, 2013, there was a gas explosion in a building in Prague. This was in no way meant to be a reflection of that, as it was written days beforehand, but there are people who look for connections that do not exist...

That said, my heart and thoughts go out to those injured in Prague. Thankfully, from the news stories I've read to date, no one died in that explosion; yes, I _could_ have moved the whole scene to a different city, but, unfortunately, I've placed several important things in Prague in the future of my fic, and it's quite important to Book III of this fic. I felt it best to keep it in as is, and hope that you, my readers, can see that this is purely fiction, as opposed to the very events that happened in real life.

Well, with that out of the way... On with the review replies!

HairyLimey: thanks for the review, and sorry for the long lag on the update! I hope you continue to enjoy!

Rokigo: thanks for your review, and the nod to improvements. It's always nice to know I'm gettin' better. My fighting scenes, so I've been told, are a bit... Clinical, and unfortunately, it's hard for me to break that mindset. I hope I continue to improve, nonetheless! And I plan on continuing, no worries there.

Jimmy1201: oh, no need to worry about Elsie, she's quite... Experienced at her job. As for Shego and the voice, well... As evil as it is for me to say it, "You shall see, you shall see..." And I do plan on everyone having a front row seat if they do, indeed, find the person responsible for the attacks. Bravo is indeed doing just that, but it did seem almost easy, didn't it? But, then again, perhaps there's more to everything than what has been shown, non?

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay relaxed in the back seat of the Sloth as Kim drove, Ron sticking to his preferred shotgun position, while Rufus lounged in the Ruf-Pod attached to the center console. They were listening, to the older woman's surprise, to a mix of chill vocal trance and psytrance electronic music. Not that the superpowered woman minded; it was helping sustain a deep, satisfying mellow she'd shared with Rufus before taking off from Amsterdam. She was starting to come down finally, but they'd left Amsterdam prepared for her and Rufus' inevitable munchies.

She sighed softly as she glanced out at the countryside rolling by, which was a mix of urban and farmland that held an odd fascination for the former thief. _It's a lot like Chicago's outer suburbs, or some of the other areas in the Corn Belt..._ They were a little under two-thirds of the way from Amsterdam to Paris, just passing Seclin, the small commune that was part of the _Lille Métropole Communauté Urbaine_, the urban metropolitan community surrounding Lille, France. The community was just south of the Belgian border, and Shay found it to be peaceful and, in a surprising way, quite beautiful. She was just contemplating a nap when her stomach growled at her, making her flush slightly, despite the fact that no one else heard it.

The pale woman reached out and snagged a bag of 'American Style Teriyaki Beef Jerky' from some Dutch company. It was, in everyone's opinion, quite good, and very much in keeping with American tastes despite being lower in sodium than the equivalent American jerky. She reached out with a hand and tapped the Ruf-Pod, startling Ron and making Kim laugh at her... At _their_ boyfriend's startled, if quiet, jump. She held up the bag of jerky when Rufus looked back, sharing a knowing smile when he nodded enthusiastically. She pulled a large chunk of the jerky out of the bag and handed it to Rufus while taking a long sliver of her own, settling it in the corner of her mouth and chewing slowly as she glanced out the window at the farmland rolling by at a relatively sedate one hundred and thirty kilometers per hour.

"You're worse than Yori, Shay!" Ron finally protested when he found his voice, drawing a braying, mole rate pitched laugh from Rufus, and giggles from Kim and Shay both.

"I know, wight?" the former thief smiled non-too-innocently, mumbling around the jerky in her mouth, "How wong 'tiw Pawiph?"

"About two hours, twenty minutes?" Kim said hesitantly, glancing at the navigation prompts in the Sloth's HUD, "Presuming the traffic holds and doesn't get heavier around Paris proper, I mean."

"Coo'..." Shay sighed, leaning back in her seat and chewing with vigor, already bringing another piece of jerky up to her mouth as she finished the first. After swallowing and slipping the next in her mouth, she added, "Diff id a wewwy chiww awea of Fwante, ya c'uld pwowwy go fastew id ya wanned..."

"I won't take the chance," Kim smirked back at her love, "I'm actually pretty good at speaking French, but I'm still obviously an American and the French still dislike us..."

"Dey wike Team Poffabew," she shrugged, then swallowed once again, holding off on the next chunk of jerky by handing one to Rufus, "But I guess I have the advantage of speaking French like a native speaker..."

"Give me a day..." Ron countered with a smirk in place that made Shay raise an appreciative eyebrow.

"Nice expression, Doofus!" she called out, reaching forward to pat his head, "He's learning, Princess..." She placed another piece of jerky in her mouth as movement from an onramp caught her attention. It was a large semi-tractor with double box trailers. The first trailer was a full, sixteen point one five meter trailer, while the smaller was just nine and three-quarter meters long. The logo was in French - which posed no trouble, considering her fluency - but unfortunately, the name took a while to filter through her consciousness, _Twin Cities Management? Why is that so-..._

"I'm worried about _what_ he's learning!" Kim declared with mock severity, interrupting Shay's train of thought. She checked the rearview mirrors for oncoming traffic she relaxed slightly, as the closest vehicle was just over one half a kilometer behind them. She didn't look over at the truck proper, just the rear of the second trailer as she pulled over for the much larger vehicle. Her teasingly severe expression blossomed into a big smile as she glanced back at Shay, an amused twinkle in her eye, "He might learn a few things from you and ruin his innocent image!"

Shay blinked at the rejoinder, distracted from the truck by both Kim's interruption of her thoughts and the sheer audacity of the statement. She tittered as an immediate response came to mind and shoved the jerky into her mouth and to the side, becoming just a bit more intelligible. With a laugh, she spouted off, "Wiff dat t'ing he doev wiff hiv tongue? I t'ink you an' I _boph_ know he'ff nopt innofent!"

"Brakes!" Ron and Rufus cried as once, both pointing at the semi-tractor's second trailer bearing down on them. Kim had already been in the process of braking, but seeing the truck literally swerving its rear trailer towards them, she stabbed the brakes. The Sloth immediately slowed, forcing Shay and Ron into their restraints.

"Gemini's goons!" Ron shouted, reaching for not only the hazard lights, but another button on the dash as they saw the back end of the trailer open up, several stunstaves glowing with the brilliant blue of a lethal charge. Shay swallowed her jerky.

Just before the henchmen opened up with projected plasma, a brilliant, blue-white shield burst into being about the purple supercar. The goons seemed to actually have higher than average aim, as only a few of the balls of superheated, highly charged balls of ionized air missed to splash mostly harmlessly against the pavement behind them. The ones that struck the shield around the car flared brilliantly, dissipating their charges into the air. Those that missed and hit the road left a few small, centimeter deep gouges in the surface.

Kim immediately moved into an evasive pattern back and forth across the southbound lanes of the six lane divided highway. The truck's driver slammed on his brakes and swerved, making the trailer whip and almost go into a slide. The driver of the truck was quite good, however, as he kept the semi going forward, and drew it back along the path of the Sloth. The men in the very back almost fell out, but their comrades behind them grabbed cargo netting and held them in place. They continued to fire into the Sloth, most balls still striking the shield surrounding the supercar.

"What's going on, guys?" Wade asked, the nervously sweating teen obviously distracted as his attention was on another screen, "Why's the shi-..."

"Gemini's assholes are attacking us!" Shay growled as Kim braked in response to the truck, and swerved left once again, not wanting to risk the small opening to the right with two trailers to bypass. The driver of the truck, however, in an attempt to avoid plowing into the right hand guardrail was already turning left, forcing Kim to slow more and keeping them in the line of fire.

"Dammit!" Wade cursed, shocking everyone for a few instants. Luckily, Kim kept to her evasive maneuvering almost by rote, managing to avoid several blasts as the shield indicated it was at roughly half power. "Ok, Gemini's making some kind of push 'cause he's after Jim and Tim, too!"

"What?" all four members of Team Possible Alpha roared. Kim, feeling her blood beginning to boil, swerved right and floored the accelerator. She was forced to brake as the semi turned right again in its attempts to keep from the concrete center divider for the highway. "Any wor-..."

"I'll keep you posted," Wade promised, "But you've got more to worry about! I just activated the Sloth's scanners, and the guys inside are unloading Javelin missiles!"

"Oh, _no_ they don't!" Shay growled as the semi began to straighten out slightly. She glanced back from the semi attempting to cut Kim off from the right hand lanes, seeing other traffic slowing, but still far too close for comfort. Making a decision, the superpowered woman roared at Kim, "Get up next to the bastard's left side! Ron, lean the seat back!" Ron did so, and Kim swerved the Sloth to obey the command. The lighter, far more nimble Sloth moved past the rear of the big rig before it had finished its swerve or the henchmen could react and do more than throw a few snap shots off. Unbuckling herself, Shay asked, "Can I fire plasma through the shield?"

"Dunno!" Wade declared worriedly, "The shield was only planned as a last ditch protection scheme for escaping a bad guy! And with them using Javelins, I'd advise against flying off, those things might pierce the shield!"

"Oh, _just_ what I wanted to hear, Wade!" Kim snapped worriedly.

"Sorry!" Wade shrugged helplessly.

While Kim and Wade bantered, Rufus - familiar with the Sloth's control system - had taken the initiative, unbuckled himself and hurriedly opened the Ruf-pod. Jumping up, he'd deactivated the shield, before dropping back into the Ruf-pod, buckling in even as Shay clambered to the front of the Sloth.

The pale woman was sitting with a knee on the center console and the rear seat just above Ron's shoulder as the blond drew the window switch down far enough to activate the auto-down function. Shay guessed his position gave him a good view of the underside of her sports bra clad chest up the somewhat loose knit blouse she wore, as he couldn't resist cracking, "Shouldn't we save the view 'til later, Hot Hands?"

"Shut it, Sport!" Shay smirked, despite the tense situation. The byplay silenced Kim and Wade's budding argument, and Ron wisely stayed quiet. He did, however, smile and reach out to hold his new girlfriend in place as she half hung out of the window, her hands suddenly surrounded by a nimbus of green. The truck, now staying straight as if daring Kim to pull next to them, was flying along straight in the far right hand lane and speeding up.

Just as Kim was pulling towards the open left hand lanes, one of the men from the back of the rear trailer popped around the side and screamed out, "Fire in the hole!" With that, his comrades all lurched for the left side of the trailer as he brought up the menacing shape of the FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missile. The tube of the missile system was hanging over his right shoulder, his hands held onto two handles attached to a box hanging from underneath the weapon. The box was the Command Launch Unit, which Shay knew was part of the sighting system, having spoken with Harley about some of the weapons he and his squad had 'played with'.

_This is fuckin' _bad_, dammit!_ With a half-roar, she launched her plasma out towards the man, her hands crossing her body twice before he fired. Unfortunately, he did manage to pull the trigger before the first, mostly concussive ball hit the weapon's CLU. The second hit the tube proper, while the third took the man right in the breadbasket. The fourth managed to tag two of the missile's rearmost control fins and the rocket motor, just a few milliseconds before it ignited. This destabilized the missile's flight, causing it to loop around and beside the Sloth, just missing the shields.

The missile flew around and skipped off of the concrete highway divider, then flew back up, still on its odd, looping trajectory. Up and to its left it flew, then back down to skip once again off of the pavement, just missing the metal guardrail to the right of the highway. It slipped under the guardrail to release its fury against a hapless tree beside the roadway, splitting it and a tree behind it in half.

Then they were past the left rear of the trailer and just ahead of the dual, tandem rear axles. Shay's right hand flashed across her body and then back, sending two brilliantly flashing, almost pure emerald balls of plasma towards the right rear of the trailer. An instant later, she shoved her left hand forward as if delivering a palm strike to someone's chest, launching a more concentrated ball of almost pure kenetic plasma. It was far duller in color than the first two, with many spots of black within its roiling depths. Almost to herself, she muttered in annoyance as she saw a quick escape route vanish to their right, "I _really_ wish we'd've seen that offramp!"

"Sorry I didn't say anything, helping Joss, Felix and Tim!" Wade apologized, barely being acknowledged by Team Possible Alpha. Then the first two shots from Shay struck the inside of the rear trailer's right axles, hitting just inside the attachment point for the dual wheels. The results were dramatic: the wheels axles were almost completely shorn by the impact of the superheated plasma, and centrifugal force took care of removing them completely.

At the same time, two henchmen who had been leaning out the back of the trailer with another Javelin fell to the pavement just under one hundred and three kilometers per hour. The man holding the Javelin fired accidentally, sending the missile towards the Sloth. Kim, having seen them strike, winced, but said nothing; she had far more pressing matters. She swerved further left, almost brushing the center divider, and the missile streaked just over the Sloth, flying across the northbound lanes to strike a lamppost of the northbound onramp they were approaching.

Then Shay's second plasma burst struck the trailer's kingpin. The shot was perfectly placed, but due to having to use a mostly kinetic blast to catch up with the steel shaft with their speed, it was only cut to a point just past halfway through. Due to the mixed forces of the second trailer's axles dragging in the asphalt and the truck trying to swerve back into Kim's path, the trailer ended up pulling its front to the left faster than the tractor in the front was dragging the trailers, causing the lead trailer to start jackknifing the tractor.

Kim stood on the brakes as the second trailer suddenly cut in front of her, barely avoiding a collision. The kingpin, a very strong piece of hardened stainless steel alloy, was shorn off. What was left of the now severed kingpin drove into the pavement almost exactly on the midpoint of the innermost lane, forcing it into a wildly slewing slide, whipping the back end around with great force. None of the ten men still inside stayed there, most of them being tossed out and in front of Kim, who somehow managed to avoid all of them.

Three weren't fortunate enough to land on the southbound lane, however. All three were bounced out when the severed right axles struck the divider, sending it leaning precariously over the northbound lanes. It stayed within its lane, but sent Betas Thirteen, Twenty and Thirty-three sprawling into the confused, panicked northbound traffic...

Beta Thirteen flew head first into the A-pillar of a swerving Mercedes-Benz S-600, killing him instantly.

Beta Twenty was luckier, to a point, striking the side of the same Mercedes and bouncing between it and the concrete divider wall. While he had scrapes, bruises, several broken ribs and a broken right femur, he would live.

Beta Thirty-three was the least lucky of them, landing in front of a small five door economy car. The car ran over his legs in its driver's attempt to avoid him. A quarter second later a huge, eighteen wheel Volvo semi-tractor trailer rig ran straight over his body while the driver braked, riding the fine line that stopped him, but kept his trailer from jackknifing. Not daring to swerve - as there were several smaller vehicles around him - the semi ended up running over Beta Thirty-three's hips; he would remain conscious until he died on the way to the hospital a half hour later.

Back in the southbound lane, the Betas from the rear trailer were either still tumbling or trying to pick themselves up. Beta Seven was struck by a Volvo V50 wagon as he tumbled, almost becoming its new hood ornament. His body didn't, however, and flew backwards to strike Beta Twelve, knocking Beta Twelve's hood off while driving the poor soul into the path of a Nissan delivery van that had avoided everyone else. The driver screamed in horror as she saw his almost model perfect face... Just before the Nissan's grill slammed him down to the pavement. Luckily for him, the vehicle was high enough that he was relatively unharmed, as far as getting hit by a truck was concerned; in addition to being knocked out, he would survive with a broken jaw, nose, two broken ribs as well as cracking both his left clavicle and right ocular orbit.

Most of the vehicles behind the carnage on the southbound lanes had stopped and turned on their emergency flashers, and traffic was quickly routing itself towards the offramp to bypass the scene. Quite a few cell phone owners had them out and were calling emergency services. Those that didn't were busy taking stills or videos with those very cell phones. In the commotion, four of the remaining Betas broke and ran for the countryside. That left six men on the scene, two of which scrambled for the two remaining and functional stun staves.

The driver of the semi that had once been a double trailer arrangement was very, very good. Not only did he retain some modicum of control of his vehicle, he managed to keep the tractor from striking the righthand guardrail as the trailer forced the tractor to slew wildly to the right, but kept the trailer from striking the concrete divider.

Kim took in the scene in front of them, before opening a tray in the overhead console. Grabbing a Bluetooth headset, she yelled, "Grab one and follow me! Rufus, stay here and reactivate the shield when we're outside of it!"

"Go wit'!" the brave mole rat objected, but Kim cut him off before he could object further.

"Rufus, I _need_ you to stay here and back us up with the Sloth, 'kay?" the red-head insisted.

"If you need me," Rufus signed, Kim barely keeping up with the language she had only recently reacquainted herself with, "I have you back!"

"Of course!" Shay and Kim both agreed. The pale woman then pulled back to allow Ron to unbuckle his belt, grab a headset and clamber out of the Sloth. Kim was about to dash out towards their opponents, but had to duck back behind the door as a few stun staff balls flew by her. Shay grabbed a headset, turned it on and slid it in place while literally diving out behind Ron. As she hit the ground, she rolled back to her feet and tossed plasma balls as covering fire. One of the superheated balls struck the middle of one of the stunstaves, splitting it and causing it to spark and splutter into uselessness. The barrage also forced the other armed Beta to dive in front of the now stopped Nissan cargo van with two other Betas.

"Thanks!" Kim yelled and dashed forward, Ron at her side and Shay right on their heels. They heard the Sloth's shield's reactivate just as the first man decided to target it, the shields easily absorbing the work of just one staff.

"Ron, take the three to the left, I've got the ones up front!" Kim ordered as she dove towards the Nissan, "Shay, since you've got the best French, clear out the civilians and cover us from range!" Ron merely grunted in assent, letting out a monkey like scream that distracted all of the WWEE henchman's attention towards him.

"Gotcha, Kimmie!" Shay replied easily, smiling at Kim's take charge attitude. She dashed back towards the Volvo, seeing the woman that was driving it in a near panic as she gazed at the body in front of her vehicle. The license plates were of French origin, so she felt herself fortunate that she didn't have to perform any linguistic gymnastics. _Still, this isn't going to be easy..._ she thought, shaking her head. "Wade," she called out, "Can you give me a short ranged broadcast across the spectrum? I want to try and get people to back off or at least get behind cover!"

"On it!" the tech genius exclaimed, rapid fire tapping following his words. A few seconds later, she was up with the Volvo, just as Wade spoke again, "Got it!"

"Ladies and gentlemen," Shay said in the most soothing voice she could, her French flawless, "I'm Shego of Team Possible Alpha. Those close to the action, please leave your vehicles and carefully move back, keeping vehicles as cover! Those closer to the offramp, please stay within your vehicles, or exit them and move _towards_ the side of the road while _keeping to cover_!"

The response was immediate, as several people clambered out of their cars and moved towards the stalled line of traffic near the offramp. Most of those near the offramp, but trapped by the snarl up that happened when everyone stopped, jumped out and went towards the west side of the road, some leaping over the metal and post guardrail. She then glanced over at the young woman in the Volvo, smirking to herself slightly, _She's cute and the car's actually a pretty nice ride..._ the thought was passing, and completely off the topic, but she welcomed the slight distraction, as it focused her on what was important. Taking a breath, she tapped the glass, _And at least she didn't have kids with her!_

The woman jumped and stared over at her, her big, blue eyes shining with tears. She seemed to recognize Shay, and fumbled to open her door. "Come with me," Shay ordered gently, "I'll get you to safety..."

"But..." the woman started, pointing at the body in front of her car.

"What's your name..." Shay interrupted, keeping her voice as gentle as she could, glancing back to see Kim and Ron both taking care of business.

"Audrey..." she started, then stared up as Shay held a hand to her, "The man..."

"I'm sorry you saw that," Shay said with sincerity, "I don't know why they attacked us, but he was already dead before you hit him..."

"But... How can you be..." She swallowed and took Shay's hand, allowing herself to be pulled along.

"I saw him flying, his neck wasn't sitting right..." Shay exaggerated; she _had_ seen the man flying, but hadn't seen enough to know if he'd been alive or just unconscious, "His neck broke before he hit the pavement the first time..."

"Oh..." Audrey managed, glancing up at Shay. The pale woman felt many emotions bubbling up at the moment, emotions ranging from her aversion to lethal force to... She blinked and shook off her thoughts, but allowed the emotions free range across her face, as it would help the woman. And knowing that these men were either well paid, or more likely, true believers, she could suppress her desire to break down at the moment. Besides, that was one reason she'd initially chosen Drew over Gemini; it would have only been a matter of time before she'd killed the madman, or been killed by him! She was shaken from the mental place she'd been by Audrey speaking, "I... I'm sorry, I'm..."

"I don't like seeing it, either..." Shay assured her, "Neither do Kim and Ron..." They came abreast of a full size van for a flower service and she glanced down at the cute brunette, who couldn't be more than twenty. Laying a hand on her shoulder, she murmured, "Stay here behind this van and wait for the gendarmes; when they speak to you, I'll support you, okay?"

Audrey nodded, and then Shay looked back, frowning slightly, "I have to get back with Kim and Ron. Stay safe, Audrey, and remember I have your back!" Shay didn't await a response as she dashed back towards the conflict, sprinting as fast as she could. She'd seen something moving at the back of the truck, but wasn't sure what. It was almost as if her eyes were sliding off of what she was trying to see, and there was only one thing that could do that! And it would also explain how Gemini's alphas had improved their hand to hand as much as they had back in Amsterdam...

"Ninja..." she griped, "Why did he have to hire _ninja_?"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Jim!" Joss yelled in worry as she leaped from Felix's lap and dashed forward, immediately reaching for his neck to check for a pulse, "Wade, Jim's alive but pretty beat up, can you have TI ge-..."

"They're on their way already, Joss!" Wade exclaimed, tapping on his keyboard, "I'm getting an energy reading from another room, I'm hacking the cams in the wing to find him!"

"Well, well, _well_," Ollie McTwist leered at Joss, "Looks like we got ourselves a two fer one special!"

"I'm'a kick yer ass, boy!" Joss roared as Felix settled down beside her.

"Ah, ah!" Adrena Lynn cautioned, "Your other cousin's in some _frr-eaky_ trouble with ninjas, girlie!"

Felix, seeing that Joss was holding their attention, looked at their evil counterparts. They were dressed in relatively normal clothing, except for the thin exoskeleton that surrounded parts of their bodies. _He's good at tech,_ Felix noted, noticing how the frames of the exoskeletons wouldn't interfere with the acrobatic movements the pair favored, _Too bad they're the bad guys!_ He then floated just above the auburn haired teen and tapped a few commands into his chair. The chair charged up the air powered 'Taser slugs' that he'd recently installed within the seat frame of his chair.

"Down!" he yelled, startling Ollie into freezing and Lynn into diving forward and into him with an unconscious reaction. Nonetheless, he managed to strike the former skateboarding star with one of the slugs, just missing Lynn as she dove out of the way.

McTwist barely managed to eek out a chattering squeal of pain before falling into a twitching lump. He wasn't unconscious, but he would be out of play for a while, hopefully long enough to wrap everything up. Then Lynn was on her feet, her face twisted in a deep, snarling visage of hate, "I'm going to _kill_ you, you fr-_eaky_ cripple!"

She was about to say more, but Joss was already on her, delivering a vicious series of alternating elbow, knee, foot and hand strikes to the former stuntwoman. Lynn, while not as well versed in martial arts as Joss, held her own against the onslaught. She'd learned quite a few things in the Colorado Women's Correctional Facility in Cañon City. She was now a capable enough fighter to be able to participate in professional women's mixed martial arts competitions, so she was not only able to block the blows, but return a few. The exoskeleton, while designed to increase her strength and agility by a solid percentage, didn't give her any strength advantage over the powerful ranch girl. While she was a bit faster naturally, and a bit faster than Joss, the auburn haired college student still had a faster reaction time and was able to block or redirect the powerful blows sent at her.

Overall, it left the women in a stalemate, which forced Joss into what some considered the most important of the the time honored hero and villain dynamic: banter. "So you had to bring out mechanical add ons to compete, faker?"

"Shut up, bitch," Lynn snapped, driving a vicious, raking, clawed hand towards Joss' eyes, "At least my man can walk around and get it up without a pump!"

"As if _that's_ an issue!" Joss sniggered, startling Lynn enough that the older woman barely flinched her face out of the way of Joss' jumping, spinning hook kick, "But I don't have to wear some _suit_ to fight someone!"

She landed and immediately skipped into a sidekick, again catching Lynn offguard enough that she had to block, instead of dodging to the side as she'd have preferred, "And _pink_ hair? The dye-job blonde was bad enou-... Woah!"

Joss was barely able to dodge out of the way of two throwing spikes, which passed in between her and Lynn. She glanced over at the men wearing stylized shinobi shōzoku. "And you're hiring two-bit ninja as henchmen?" She dodged and weaved as the ninja threw several stars in her direction, just in time for Felix to crash into his side, slamming him into the wall and unconsciousness. "Thanks, babe!"

"Nah," Lynn snapped, catching Joss with a powerful dropkick to the gut, "_They_ hired _us_ 'cause we're _that good_!"

"You do know what Gemini's retirement plan is, don't you, girl?" a moderately deep voice called out from behind Joss. Then all three members of Team Impossible dropped from the robotics building roof, smirks on their faces, as Dash Damon continued, "Those're his goons you're running around with! Though they must be third string Iotas playing ninja dress up instead of Gemini's Alphas!"

"What_ever_!" Lynn snapped, smirking as she saw McTwist turning his eyes this way and that, then wink at her, "Team I'm-Chokeable seems to be backing _you_ up, Jossy, so I think _you're_ the loser here!"

"Hey, _faker_," came from behind Lynn. Everyone looked in the direction of the young sounding voice and stared for a brief moment: there stood a completely enclosed suit piloted by Tim Possible, an angry glint in his eyes. In his hands were the legs two of the WWEE agents that Dash had identified as possibly mislabeled Alpha agents, both of which he was dragging behind him, "back off or give up, and I won't beat you for what you did to my brother!"

"Go to hell, little boy!" Lynn laughed as McTwist suddenly bunched up his body like an inchworm and launched himself at Dash. Dash, despite being caught completely off guard, managed to dodge the clothesline that would have done Pain King proud and countered with a vicious looking knee.

McTwist managed to get his hands out to block the knee, then brought up an elbow towards Dash's temple. It was a glancing connection, but his exoskeleton's elbow joint made the blow far stronger than it should have been. Dash staggered back, McTwist following him and throwing wild punches and kicks out at Burn Burnmen and Crash Cranston. The distraction of his sudden move allowed Lynn to sucker punch Joss and jump towards Felix. While the punch was strong, it wasn't supported by the exoskeleton's enhancements, and that struck Joss as odd, even as she fell back into the surprised arms of Tim Possible.

"Joss!" Felix cried in worry, making Lynn gasp in shock as he leapt from the chair she thought him permanently tied to. That momentary surprise gave Felix an opening to smash a foot into her face and use her as a springboard to land next to Joss and Tim.

"I'm fine, Wings!" the auburn haired teen snapped, though the blood leaking from her nose would give lie to that assertion, "I think that 'er exo's power's low, that punch was kinna weak, y'know?"

"I'll show you weak!" Lynn screeched, reaching out to grab Felix's chair in order to toss it at them. They heard the whine of servos as she moved, and tensed to dodge, when the form of Crash Cranston slammed into her, knocking them both into a sprawl of cursing, growling punches and kicks. Tim, seeing an opening between Burn and Dash, tossed both of the seemingly faux ninja towards McTwist, knocking the skateboarder back, but not out of the contest.

The youngest Possible took a step towards him, when Joss interrupted him as she pushed Felix towards his chair, "Get Jim out of here, or wake him up, Timmy!"

"But..." Tim started, but a glance at his still unconscious brother, bleeding from a busted lip, made his decision for him. "I'll be back to help out in a few!" he snapped, his bulky suit moving with surprising smoothness as he lumbered towards his brother. Aloud, he pondered, "Still need to smooth out the motion programming..."

With her cousins taken care of, at least for the moment, Joss decided to step up her game. Glancing at Felix, she snapped out, "Wings, help Crash take Lynn, I got McTwist!"

"Why do you get the guy and I get the faker chick?" Felix asked with a chuckle, earning a raspberry from his girlfriend.

"It's 'cause Ima tear her face off if I fight 'er!" the auburn haired cutie declared, before dashing towards the skateboarder, who was, surprisingly, holding his own against two members of Team Impossible. But one thing that Joss noticed right away was that his speed was dropping in a slow, steady manner. _I was right!_ she exulted to herself, _His batt'ry tech's not good 'nuff t'keep up wit' a _real_ fight!_

Seeing his attention shift towards her, Joss let out a loud roar in hopes of startling him. It worked, at least long enough that she was able to land a flying, double front snap kick to his gut. She had been sprinting at top speed when she'd jumped up into the kick, and almost all of her forward momentum was halted by striking the man. He flew backwards, gasping for breath and barely holding back the urge to vomit from the force of her kick. Dash was on him almost immediately, driving a rock hard hammerfist into the side of McTwist's head, knocking him unconscious. "Thanks, Possible!" the former hero-for-hire, now full time member of Global Justice growled, giving her a thumbs up.

"Nice tag, Mr. Damon!" Joss replied, returning the thumbs up. She was about to suggest removing the battery pack from the exoskeleton when Burn reached down and did just that, turning the exoskeleton into a useless mass of locked mechanical joints. To add to the confinement, he took two sets of zip ties from his utility belt and began to tie the man to his immobilizing frame. All three of them winced as they heard a loud screech of denial from Lynn.

"You hurt my babyboy and I'm going t-..." Her impending tirade was interrupted when Felix used her distraction to literally ram into her from behind. The former stuntwoman flew up and forwards, landing in a heap against her lover, where a quick thinking Burn reached down and disconnected the fannypack-like battery from the frame. It was Dash that removed zipties and began to tie her to her frame, just as several vehicles from both the Middleton Police Department and Middleton County Sheriff's Office pulled into the quad.

"Miss Poss'ble," Officer Hobble called out, "We 'ave tha perim'ter all sealed up, an' it seems ye 'ave these ne'er do wells ready for transport?"

"Yes, sir, we do." Joss nodded, before turning to Dash, "Thanks to Team Impossible and Cousin Tim, this went a _lot_ smoother than we were worried it would!" She was about to add more when the sound of a jet overhead drew their attention. The oddly sleek yet ungainly shape of an older GJ assault hoverjet came into view over the robotics building, making towards a clear area of the quad. "Speaking of which," she glanced over to see Jim being helped to his feet by his brother, blushing at having been caught off guard by the two villains, "I need t'talk t' my cousins!"

Joss made her way over to the twins as the jet settled down, smiling at them, "You alright, Jim?"

"Yeah, just a little woozy and suffering a bruised ego." he griped, then glanced over at Felix, who was hovering over in his chair. "Hey, you got the new additions installed!"

"Yep!" Felix said proudly, patting his trusty chair. He was about to say more when another GJ vehicle, a modified armored car used to transport supervillains and their henchmen, trundled onto the quad from behind the police and sheriff's office vehicles.

Joss, Felix and the twins began to relax, as did various students and faculty. They were starting to show themselves in windows of classes, and from doors to buildings, waving and in some cases cheering the heroes. The two teens tensed, however, when Crash of Team Impossible muttered, "That's odd, I didn't get any notification of their arrival..."

"You what?" Dash said in alarm, glancing over at the police who were escorting prisoners towards the hoverjet.

That was when Wade's voice came over the local radio network and roared, "Those aren't GJ operatives!"

His warning almost came too late; as it was, a few of the officers were caught off guard by GJ issue Taser wristwatches. Most, however, managed to dodge, and about a third of the WWEE agents were struck by apparent friendly fire. About two dozen men and women dressed in GJ issue uniforms spilled from within the hoverjet and the armored car, firing tasers and in a few cases, stunballs from stunball rifles.

"Joss, Felix, get a headset to Jim and Tim!" Wade called out, knowing they could still communicate with him via their wrist Kimmunicators. Joss nodded and handed off the bluetooth headsets to them, and they all heard Wade grumble, "Why did the Sloth's shields..."

"Jim, Tim," Joss snapped out when it seemed that Wade was distracted, "Go help Hobble and the rest, Dash, can you help us keep these guys secure?"

"Sure thing, Possible!" Dash, once the arrogant hero-for-hire, smiled at the young woman, "We've got your backs!"

"Felix, let's try and stop that jet from taking off!" Joss exclaimed, leaping into his lap.

"Right!" he exclaimed as they blasted into the air, driving hard towards the hoverjet even as the rear ramp began to close...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Betty Director stared out the front window of the rented Mercedes Benz E-Class sedan, pursing her lips in concern. They were in an alley off of a two way, four lane secondary street in the Prague 2 district of Prague, in the Czech Republic. The alley looked out into a small, well kept park that had dozens of families out on the late Friday afternoon. The area was residential, and to her eyes, quite beautiful. Though the alley, like back alleys the world over, was relatively dirty and surprisingly dark, considering it was the early afternoon. They were waiting on the arrival someone with information on a potential contact. One that could eventually tip the scales in their current plan, when it finally came to fruition...

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Betty Director asked as that thought crossed her mind. She looked over at her brother..._ That woman's_... She blinked, shaking her head and raising her hand to squeeze the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. _He's _mine_, dammit! _My_ brother!_ After a moment, she let go and sat back stiffly, gazing out of the car window. Her nostrils flared as she took a breath, which she huffed out in a sigh, "I know that we worked over the plan several times, but..."

"My dear sister..." Sheldon Director said with a confident smirk, reaching a large hand around her shoulder to pull her closer to his left side. Seeing her in some kind of pain, he gently rubbed her neck with his flesh and blood hand, "My _love_... Yes, you _did_ work over _my_ original plan, but you did so with input from Agents Alpha and Delta - my best agents, as you yourself know - and assured me that it was risky, but workable. Why the sudden doubts?"

"I..." she hissed, then sighed as he found a particularly tight knot of muscle and massaged it into submission, "Gemini, there's something I have to tell you..." She heard the guilty nervousness in her own voice and felt Sheldon tense for a brief moment in response as she reached for her attaché case. She could almost hear him working through a sudden, intense bout of anger at her actions and words, and hoped he'd keep himself calm. She almost breathed a sigh of relief when she felt him loosen up and remain calm; in the last weeks she'd drilled into him, and he'd finally learned, that patience was indeed a virtue.

She placed her thumbs on the fingerprint scanner and quickly slid the combination lock's numbers into place while an indicator light above the fingerprint reader showed a dull amber. When she got the combination in its proper alignment, in the proper sequence, she again held her thumbs to the scanners. A quarter second later, the case beeped softly and a the indicator changed to a bright green. Opening the case, she dug in and removed a hard copy printout of what appeared to be an official GJ document.

With a sigh, she held the document out to him, allowing him to read it. She allowed a mental smirk as he read the document and began to shake in anger, dropping her face as if chagrined. It was merely a ploy, to hide the mirth she knew danced in her eyes. While Gemini might have missed it in his suddenly renewed rage, the implacable ninja in the front seat might have caught it and brought it to Gemini's attention.

When Sheldon flipped to the second page and began to mutter vicious curses under his breath, she knew where he was in the document. The first page had allegedly detailed their concerns over the family, 'supported' by pages of documentation following the second page. But the summary and suggested actions on the second page, those would anger _anyone_ that knew Betty Director, but most especially the man who loved her as much as her own brother. _Brotherly and romantic love makes for a protective streak a mile wide..._ she almost snickered, but held off. She couldn't help but admire her work, since it was dated August 7th, 1994... That was a time when Gemini had been part of GJ, and Betty herself had only been North America's Second Agent. Glancing at Sheldon, she saw his face pale while red splotches appeared along his throat, cheeks and the bridge of his nose, while the veins along his temples and between his brows stood out prominently in unaffected rage.

"While Agnes Director (neé Tokarev) was Global Justice's premier Second Agent, the family has a known penchant for showing behavior both laudable - tendency towards completeness, competitiveness in a team oriented fashion, and nearly obsessive-compulsive needs to do good - and abhorrent - overconfidence bordering on arrogance, conceit in their belief, lack of guilt for actions taken - in nature. While both were exhibited in former Second Agent Agnes Director, the latter had a tendency to show more often in Covert Operations General Director, Gregory Director; it was fortunate that his wife and former Director General, Margaret Possible, kept him in line. Even at his worst, his instability and obsessive-compulsive attitudes were firmly held in check.

"Unfortunately, there were no such checks when former Global Justice Internal Affairs Director, Sheldon Director, was with the agency. His paranoia reached levels that outstripped not only the United States' McCarthy era or the Soviet Union's Stalinist era. Worse was his eventual private - but fortunately monitored - assertion to his pet, Pepe, a gift from his sister, that he was, '...the only man worthy of her (his sister) romantic interest...' Due to the elder of the Director twins' eventual breakdown, the Global Justice Research Council has taken under advisement that the possibility exists for his younger sister and current Global Justice Second Agent, Dr. Betty Director.

"Dr. Director has been the singular best agent of Global Justice since its founding as the International Security League in 1907. If Dr. Director should ever exhibit aberrant behavior, it will be disastrous. Therefore, it is the assertion of the research committee, that Dr. Director is to be monitored closely. We further suggest, with strongest insistence, that at the Global Justice Research Council's earliest convenience, they implement the operation we have dubbed 'Hidden Phoenix' (described in full detail at the end of the report). A quick summary of the operation is that she will be brought in for a full physical, including CAT and MRI scans; during the scans, the researchers will use a Memory Recorder and Storage Device to gain a full accounting of her memories. Global Justice Director General's standard 'decompression sessions' using light and sound therapy shall be increased to three times a week, for purposes of attaining new memories. As we will then have control of her memories, if Betty Director is to ever exhibit behavioral aberrations as her brother did, we shall seek out and fix those disorders in her existing, stored memories. If her aberrations persist to the point that she is a threat, she shall be eliminated, and a clone grown using techniques developed by Dr. Amy Hall shall be given her memories.

"In this way, the future of not only Global Justice, but the security of the world, shall be maintained. We of the committee understand that this breaches Global Justice's ethical boundaries, which is why it is being brought to the attention of the UNSC outside of Global Justice's chain of command. We hope you consider this

Addendum, Mar. 6, 2006.

In the last twelve years, it has become obvious that Dr. Director, as great an asset as she is, has become - potentially - the world's fifth greatest threat by herself. Suggest increasing full memory downloads to once per week, while keeping the scheduled partial downloads as is. As well, increase covert monitoring activities to constant, with the inclusion of all private places she may go. While harsh, this is of utmost importance. If she were to become compromised while in control of Global Justice, with the loyalty she maintains of not only her subordinates, but Global Justice allies, she will become the world's greatest threat."

The next page contained the apparent UNSC response, a simple, terse sentence, "The UNSC authorizes Operation Hidden Phoenix be implemented immediately." The document was on official United Nations letterhead, and undersigned by all members of the UNSC at the time, with additional signatures authorizing the addendum.

"Those..." Sheldon whispered, being very careful to replace the documents to the attaché case before he ripped them in his rage, "Those _bastards_!" He looked over at his sister, and Betty felt a nearly electric jolt fly through her system. There was his rage, a dark, almost living thing that seemed to boil through him, but also something else... It took the woman a moment to place it, but it was a deep, unbridled, fiercely protective love. "That's... Not even _I_ would do something so, so... _Disgusting_..."

"I know, Shelly..." Betty whispered, raising her hand to touch the side of his face and smiling hesitantly, as if afraid what she was seeing from him would be proved false.

"Elisabeth..." Then he gathered her into his arms and pulled her close, shivering with the intensity of his emotions. "I'm sorry that my actions caused..."

"Shhh..." Betty shushed gently, tears of sympathetic emotion in her eyes, "I found my love for you before I knew of this, Big Brother... If it's anyone's fault, it's mine..."

"Are you sure?" Sheldon asked softly, his voice no longer the bombastic megalomaniac, but the worried older brother mixed with the scared five year old boy that had first said he'd marry his sister when they grew up.

"Yes, Shelly," she murmured, patting his back as he had hers, "I promise..."

Their moment was interrupted by the soft voice of Alpha One, who pointed towards the street and a seeming beggar making his way down the narrow alley. "Our contact approaches, Gemini-sama." Alpha One dropped his window and asked in surprisingly fluent English, "Why are you dirtying our alley?"

The man responded in far more broken English, "I ham shahring deh ahllay wit' eyou." With that, he flashed a hand signal that only Gemini, Betty, Agent Alpha, and Alphas One through Five, Seven through Eleven, and Twenty-three through Twenty-seven knew. This confirmed him as Alpha Two, and as Alpha One nodded, he leaned in and whispered softly in an accent that wouldn't have been out of place in Manchester, England, "They want to meet in two weeks, and agreed upon the location. More details inside." With that, he reached into his jacket and produced a bottle of foul smelling grain alcohol, while holding his hand out. He asked in loud, broken English, "Coult eyou spare Euros?"

"Here." Alpha One said with the appropriate disdain, all but dropping the bills as the man reached for them. He kept his bottle in hand quite properly, but had to place his free hand on the rolled down window sill. This action hid the fact that he dropped a flash drive into Alpha One's hand.

The man stood and muttered, "Gott wa'ch ofer eyou..." before staggering off.

"It's nearly time." Sheldon murmured after Alpha One rolled up the window. With a dark smile upon his face, he nodded to the driver, who pulled up to the street entrance. Checking for cross traffic, Alpha One he pulled out such that the Mercedes was hidden from the park by a set of three cargo vans, two from a moving company but one from a bakery, and in front of a white Mercedes of the same class as their rental... Smiling, Sheldon glanced over at Betty and pressed a button on his right wrist. The car's windows darken and he chuckles evilly, "It's time..."

Seven and a half seconds later, they slowed and fell in behind the third cargo van. Sheldon glanced over and sighed in relief as he saw another car rounding a corner on the two way street, and leaned over to give his sister a soft kiss...

It was that precise moment when peace of Prague 2 was shattered by two car mounted MON-200 mines, leaving literally no secondary injuries of any import... But shrouding a very small area of the street in a nearly blinding orange flash, smoke, shrapnel and flames...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Kim, get to cover!" Ron yelled just before he started to run around the big Nissan cargo van's nose, even leaping up to the roof of the cab like a panicked monkey. Kim, showing the implicit trust she had in her fiancé, dashed a serpentine course for the back of the same van, though she was worried about the van's driver. That worry was over in a flash when she saw the driver almost fifty meters away, towards the cars the confrontation had backed up.

Something, she wasn't sure what, told her to make her course even more random. Knowing, beyond a doubt, that the intuitive feeling was right, she did just that, adding a handspring flip that turned into a course changing twist. As soon as her feet touched ground, she went into a forward somersault, landing at a dead run towards the rear of the cargo van. And not an instant too soon; as she ran, she heard at least two dozen metallic clinks on the pavement behind and around her. What she saw seemed to astonish her into pausing for a brief moment as throwing spikes and throwing stars came into her field of view, some bouncing off of the asphalt, some sticking into the cargo van's side and right rear tire.

She heard the whoosh of Shego's plasma as she dove and rolled around the back end and glanced towards the semi. There were three _shuriken_ still flaring with Shay's brilliant plasma, as well as two throwing spikes. "Thanks, Lover!" she said as Shay dropped to a crouch beside her.

"No big, Kimmie." Shay muttered, frowning darkly as she followed Kim around to the left side of the truck, "Gemini's hired friggin' _ninja_?"

"You know for sure they're Gemini's?" Kim asked, then jumped with a bit of a squeak when Ron spoke up from his position hanging from the top of the cargo truck.

"They're wearing what looks like black versions of Gemini's uniform mixed with _shinobi shōzoku_." He smiled down at Kim as she gave him a dark glare for startling her, "Sorry, anyway, their suits are almost black, but has the alpha symbol on the back."

"Lovely!" Shay muttered sarcastically, "Anything else?"

"I dunno..." Ron looked troubled as he dropped next to them, "Something familiar about how they're moving, and their techniq-..."

He was interrupted by three bolts of green plasma flying just past his head, followed by the sounds of two people grunting in pain and one screaming briefly before falling from the van's cab roof. "Don't think too hard on it!" Shay admonished, before quirking an eyebrow, "I managed to catch a glimpse of most of them, how many d'you think still have throwing shit?"

"Probably none that're coming at us." Ron said, then glanced at his loves, "Best defense is a good offense?"

"Damn right!" Shay and, to both her lover's surprise, Kim snapped. Kim blushed slightly and winked at the older woman, "Hey, I _am_ an adult now!"

"Right..." Shay murmured and ruffled Kim's hair, before glancing up.

Kim had heard the skuff of a boot on the roof of the cargo truck as well, and nodded upwards, "Boost?" Shay smirked and turned away, holding clasped fingers out to give Kim that boost. Kim skipped back and placed her foot on the pale woman's hands, and when she started to press down, the superpowered woman used a little over half of her ultimate strength to launch Kim upwards. While not nearly as strong as her older brother, Kim knew that even at half strength her lover was more than strong enough to toss her bodily to the top of the van or higher; combined, the force of Kim's leg shoving downwards and Shay standing and shoving explosively, launched the red-head almost fourteen feet above the top of the cargo van.

As she passed the top of the van, she kneed the apparent WWEE ninja in the chin, knocking him out and sending him sprawling towards three others. She then twisted and tumbled, managing to avoid two thrown shuriken that missed her by less than a centimeter. On top of the van, only one of the three got caught in the resultant pile up and he fell not only _properly_, but consciously avoided his head colliding with the box's roof. This told Kim more than anything that they were well above the normal henches she and Ron were used to fighting.

"These guys are good!" she yelled as she came down just past the two that had fallen. She dropped and spun around, sending a hook kick to the side of the still conscious, but supine, goon's head. The move was fortuitous, as a HenchCo Shok-Stik crackled through the air just above her head. That made the man her next target. As he tried for a backhand strike towards her head, she ducked, while at the same time reaching out with a sweeping, outward Southern Mantis style block. Her forearm slammed into his with bruising force and she immediately wrapped her curled hand around his wrist while jerking him down towards her.

This served multiple functions... First, it threw him off balance. Second, it shoved the weapon away from her body while trapping his wrist within her grasp. Third, and from Kim's perspective most importantly, she was quite used to contact to her forearms from her training, while the hench was not. The man's lack of experience with arm to arm contact and the sheer power of the blow jarred his weapon hand opened slightly, allowing her to slip her other hand's fingers inside and relieve him of the weapon.

As soon as she had her hand on the weapon, she used her flexibility to her advantage. Before the man could recover and attack, she drove her foot nearly vertical, driving her heel under his chin. The hench collapsed into an unconscious lump as she dodged an attack from his fellow, this one bearing a bo staff. She gave herself some space from the man, as he spun the weapon with obvious experience. He was also quite large, but moved with some grace, which told her he was not going to be an easy opponent. Then she noticed something behind him, just as he called out, "Come back here!"

"Come get me, Tiny!" Kim smirked, hoping it would enrage him into a clumsy attack. It did not, but he did start to move forward... When a hand tapped him on the shoulder.

"Wha-..." he started, spinning around and trying to bring his staff to bear. But a flare of green light at his forehead stopped him cold, as Shay tapped him in the forehead.

"Knockout plasma, it's great!" she tittered, then glanced behind Kim, "Company!"

Kim dropped down into a low Southern Crane stance, her left leg bent and her right straight, pointed towards Shego with her upper body towards the front of the truck. Kim glanced back to see if Shay was going to be able to help or if she should take the initiative. It seemed that her actions gave Shay a clear shot at the two ninja. She scuttled backwards, keeping low, to give Shay a better shot at the ninja just attaining the top of the truck, but kept her attention on Shay for the moment.

Under normal circumstances, the older woman would lob her plasma almost like shooting a free throw in basketball. Due to the odd properties of her plasma, it would remain more but more level, and move at a far faster speed. Doing so, for her, seemed to make it far more accurate, and Kim had always noticed her tensing up ever-so-slightly more than she should before throwing the plasma. Now, however, she appeared to be loose, the tension nonexistent; when she brought her arms out to her right, then dragged them twice across her body in a sweeping, Northern Tiger kung fu style swipe the heroine was _quite_ surprised. The moves were quick, her arms blurring with speed, and each movement sent two balls of plasma from each hand at the henchmen.

Kim turned back before the second volley of plasma was off. The first ninja was struck straight in the breadbasket with two balls as he leapt at Kim, knocking him back and to the unyielding asphalt below. The second managed to land and fall into a forward roll, only catching a plasma ball on the bottom of his _tabi_ boots. Kim knew immediately that his style was Tai Shing Pek Kwar, thanks to sparring she'd done with not only Ron, but Hirotaka and Yori.

The other plasma ball sailed on and down, striking the side of the longer trailer that now blocked the roadway. Kim used the man's distraction of dodging Shay's plasma to slip beside him to her left, bunching her legs beneath her. When he was positioned just so, she knocked him off of the truck with a shoulder check that would have made Middleton High's football coach proud. As soon as he was flying, she yelled, "Ron, these guys're using your style!"

"I noticed!" Ron snapped in a sing-song fashion, pulling in towards them from their left, but staying on the ground. Shay and Kim both chanced a glance over the side to see Ron jumping, diving and dodging around six of Gemini's pet ninja. He dove forward and between the legs of one of them, his trailing feet striking the man in the crotch and dropping him forward. Ron was up and then fell backwards as if losing his balance, driving an elbow into the back of his head, and driving his face back into the asphalt. "They're trained like Yamanouchi, but not as thoroughly!"

Three others were already laid out around him, and his eyes were trailing a faint aura, almost like blue smoke, as he moved. He was also wielding two Shok-Stiks with apparent skill, which kept the ninja at bay. Kim glanced up and over towards the guardrail when something just out of her line of sight caught her attention. She knew that Yamanouchi's stealth techniques used the easily tricked human eye against them, and that the better students could even tap slightly into the mystic arts to trick technology. She glanced at Shay, who had charged her hands again and ordered, "Shay, your one o'clock, along the guardrail!"

The superpowered woman seemed to want to argue, but Kim was already jumping to help her fiancé. She landed solidly on one of the men, driving her feet into his back and his head into Ron's kicking foot, which he'd already started into as he saw Kim drop. The red-head immediately dove to the left, which saved her from being skewered by three spikes thrown from the area of the guardrail. An instant later, almost two dozen dark, kinetically charged plasma balls from the truck struck their area, exploding against the ground and guardrail with the force of flashbangs. Four of them hit two different ninja, hitting them like a linebacker shoulder checking them.

"Thanks!" Ron called out, having used his Shock-Stiks to block a few _shuriken_, "We need to _end_ this!"

"There's a knot of six or eight over by their semi's nose, Sport!" Shay informed them, and Kim took a brief moment to glance over. Her eyes slid off of the area, as she'd half expected, but even her peripheral vision didn't pick them up. "I can't do much, they've got cover from me!"

"Help KP!" Ron said and... Disappeared from Kim's sight. Whatever he'd done confused the ninja as well, if their distraction looking for the Monkey Master formerly in their midst was any indication.

Kim took immediate advantage, leaping up and dropping a left axe kick down on the shoulder of the closest ninja. He cried in pain as his shoulder dislocated, but was cut off quickly as she used the impetus the kick provided to move into a jumping knee to his face. She then followed through and flipped forward, her left foot coming down with even more force than the first. The ninja she'd targeted barely dodged, then was set upon by the whirling dervish that was Kim Possible.

The two traded several hand, elbow and knee strikes, all of them blocked, in the course of about a second and a half. Kim saw that his uniform had a three behind his alpha symbol, and felt a brief surge of worry, _I hope Gemini doesn't train all of his goons this way!_

Then the man made a minute mistake. He slightly telegraphed a backfist, allowing Kim to duck under and move behind him. She crawled up his back by placing a solid kick to the back of his left knee, then reaching her leg up to his right thigh as he knelt. The move saved her from a vicious kick from one of his compatriots, which in turn left the blow landing on her first opponent's chest. She heard the crack of ribs and winced, before using the shoulder of the man she'd unintentionally used as a shield as a springboard, kicking herself towards Shay.

The former thief saw her coming and held up her hands, which Kim caught deftly. "Ring 'round the Rosie?" Shay smirked, which Kim matched as her lover began to spin around. Kim gripped harder with one arm and twisted her body around, and their years of fighting allowed Shay to understand her intent. Letting go of the opposite arm, she allowed Kim to continue her twist, just in time for the red-head to drive a kick into one of the men's face. He stumbled back with a broken nose and cracked cheek, dropping and rolling around in pain.

Her next target was trying to sneak up on Shay while her back was turned. She grabbed onto the hand Shay was using to hold her and tugged while swinging her legs down and under her, and Shay tugged back. The move accelerated her just past Shay's slim waist, allowing her to kick the man hard enough to drive him into the truck's cab. He fell to the ground insensate, just as Shay grabbed onto Kim's hands with her free hand.

She then pulled Kim towards her midsection, which increased the speed of the spin, while Kim began to scissor her legs. The move took out one of the other two men, while Shay took out the last by letting go of Kim with one hand and sending a plasma ball into his chest.

"Shay, toss me to the guardrail!" Kim said suddenly, and the older woman obeyed without a thought.

She finished her turn and let go of Kim, muttering, "Careful, Princess!"

The red-head gave her a thumb's up as she sailed through the air, sending herself into a half twisting somersault to get her feet underneath her. She'd seen two ninja from the guardrail stop hiding and unlimber firearms while heading towards the front of the truck. This was something she would _not_ allow, under any circumstances!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Agent Alpha sat in the cab of the truck, watching the Betas with pursed lips barely visible through his mask. "Idiots!" he hissed to Alpha Three, "I told them to _wait_!"

"You know how the new Agent Beta is, _Sensei_." the similarly masked Alpha Three murmured, "He is not only a true believer in Gemini-_sama_'s ideals, he is a glory hound."

Alpha smirked ruefully, his eyes narrowing in annoyance at the fact that he, too, was once the same way. Still was, but had far more control over such a... Base desire, than he had a few years earlier. Still... "The fool ruined our chance to destroy that waste, Stoppable, and two of our greatest threats." With a sigh, he glanced at the video screen linked to the camera in the back. He reached out and pressed the intercom button and said softly, "Alpha Agents, prepare to attack. Remember your training, use it to your utmost. Sakura Squad, stay hidden, and use your throwing weapons from the guardrail to the west, only use firearms when you've exhausted your other weapons. Sake Squad, form up with Edamame Squad and approach them directly, but only after using _your_ ranged weapons on them. If you are captured... Remember your orders, understood?"

"_Hai, Sensei_!" they all shouted, earning a smile from Alpha.

He glanced at Alpha Three and nodded, "Follow me out my door and join the latter two squads. I shall observe and strike a hopefully decisive blow while you distract them."

"_Hai, Sensei_." Alpha Three said, bowing in a respectful manner despite being in the tight confines of the semi's cab. A bow that Ron Stoppable would have found disturbingly familiar.

Alpha pushed the door to his side of the cab over, even as they heard the fighting coming to an end on the other side of the vehicle. He saw that all of his men were out and ready, and signaled them with time honored signals. They all nodded and left, leaving their leader to observe, as had been Gemini's orders.

And observe the Japanese man did, with growing concern. He knew that his men were leaps and bounds above most of the rest of Gemini's men. He knew they were better than all but Jack Hench's best, and even then, he would have considered his own men _equal_ to HenchCo's best, if not _superior_ in some ways. But seeing the three heroes tear through his men was almost disheartening. _Then again,_ he thought with a marked degree of disdain, _I am as far above my own men as they are..._

Seeing that the three had yet to spot him, he signaled Sakura squad to attack, again observing. Stoppable had come a long way since he'd last seen him, and he felt impressed that he had. The blond was still sloppy, as evidenced by some of his moves, but he was surprisingly... Competent, even in that very sloppiness. Possible, of course, had been quite good already, but wondered at her seeming lack of advancement in her forms, even if he'd only watched her on video until that day. Granted, she'd become a good deal faster over the years, and probably stronger, but to do so while only attaining mastery at three or four of the forms he saw? Disgusting, for a warrior! Unless she was increasing her speed and strength in preparation for more mastery?

He shook his head to dismiss the thoughts for now, turning his attention to Shego. He'd heard of her for years, and seeing her in action, knew she was the deadliest of the three. Destroying Ron Stoppable, the so-called 'Hero of the Lorwardian Invasion' or Kim Possible would be a massive feather in his cap... Fighting Shego to a standstill and then killing her would give him the same renown, as well as cement his reputation as a warrior without peer. _Ready yourself, you unnatural bitch!_ Alpha smirked, _You shall not live to see your next sunset!_

He listened to the three communicate, and knew the exact moment to strike. He 'felt' Stoppable close on his men at the front of the semi, and saw Shego toss Possible over to the guardrail. "Perfect..." he murmured in his native Japanese. He quickly centered himself, increasing the concentration his 'hidden techniques' - the training that allowed him to hide even while being observed - required for optimal use. Only four of his fellows and one of his teachers had been able to do that when he'd first met Stoppable years ago... Now he would use that to land the deciding blow of his combat with Shego before she had a chance to see him.

He dropped from the top of the semi tractor's cab, making his way straight towards Shego. Reaching back, he slipped his hand under his shirt and found a very special pouch. It contained three spikes that were useful for both throwing and hand to hand. Their tips were bathed in a poison that had been used by his former clan for centuries, even if they killed a small handful of people in the course of a decade; it was a poison that no one could survive, and no one had ever shown the ability to work up a resistance to.

Taking care, he slipped two out and readied himself, before tossing them. To his shock, she noticed the movement of his hands, her hands flaring brightly as she performed a wide, sweeping double block, melting the spikes and batting the smouldering slag from the air at the same time. "C'mon out, asshole!" she growled, looking almost straight at him.

_She knows the secret of seeing me..._ he pursed his lips and faded into view, _Yes, she is _indeed_ the superior foe!_ When she made eye contact with him, he gave her a mocking bow, his head cocked to the side as if inviting an attack. She flipped him off, before tossing two plasma balls of her own. He easily dodged them, then reached down to his waist, grasping the handle of his _katana_ and dashing forward.

The move seemed to have been expected, as she fell backwards at the last possible second, allowing the draw-slice attack to sail centimeters above her chest. She turned the move into a handstand and brought a foot arcing down to strike Alpha's wrist as he attempted to bring the blade back in a backhanded, downwards slice. The blow to his wrist, despite it being a glancing blow, hurt Alpha far more than expected. He felt a flush of shame crawling across his cheeks when he let out a protesting grunt of pain. "Aww, what's wrong?" Shego taunted him, smirking at his narrowed eyes, "Can't handle li'l ol' me, Short-stuff?"

Alpha barely restrained his anger at the slight; after all, she was _unusually_ tall for a woman! She was taller even than the idiotic blond he hated so - who had, somehow, grown the same handful of centimeters taller than Alpha than Alpha had been to him when they'd first met - so he bit back his annoyance as a statement of fact for the odd woman. In fact, he could use that as an insult, "I shall _end_ you, Oni, and leave your lovers bereft of you..."

"Better have tried," Shego murmured, then surprised Alpha by performing a standing leap from her stance, twisting through the air and nearly catching him in the back of the head with her foot. He dodged by diving forward, and when he came up into his stance... She was gone.

Blinking, Alpha closed his eyes and expanded his senses, briefly touching upon even the astral plane. She didn't seem to be tapping into mystic arts to disappear, so her skill at hiding must be among the best in the world. He opened his eyes and concentrated as he detected a faint scent on the air. Sandalwood, cinnamon, natural musk and, if he was correct, cannabis... To his left!

He sent himself into a spin, his leg held out at roughly her knee height. While he didn't strike flesh, he did manage to drive her into his vision once again. He followed his leg sweep with his _katana_ in an upwards strike. The woman, in a show of incredible speed, brought her glowing hands together as if delivering a vertically aligned double palm strike. At the same time, she dodged to her right slightly, turning his perfectly executed strike into an odd sort of block.

Her hands were just ahead of the circular _tsuba_, the crossguard, the roiling plasma melting the _tsuba_ and the _hakabi_, or blade collar, as well as part of the blade itself. Alpha looked on in horror as his prized blade, modeled after - and crafted in the same manner as - the three hundred year old blade owned by none other than Yori Yamanouchi. "Impossible!" Alpha hissed, his eyes widening in rage. He wanted to lambaste the fool gaijin; unfortunately for him, she was on the attack, giving him barely a chance to draw a breath. The man soon learned quickly why Kim Possible tended to deflect blows delivered by the superpowered woman as opposed to blocking directly.

The first blow he blocked was a jab towards his solar plexus, which was no more than he'd expected from a woman as apparently fit as Shego. The second blow was an uppercut which was better deflected anyway, but still left Alpha's palm stinging. The third strike was a spinning backfist from the hand opposite the uppercut, which he blocked in preparation to grab her wrist and take her down.

The feeling of two bones dislocating or breaking in his hand, however, stopped that tactic. He gasped and drew back, shaking his hand and throwing out a couple kicks to keep the pale woman at bay. His eyes were wide in surprise as the woman, who he now felt might just truly be an oni, dropped into a more formal looking stance. He almost breathed in relief when he felt a few pops from his hand that lessened the pain significantly, _I can _not_ make that mistake again!_

"Come on, boy, let's get this show on the road!" Shego snapped, coming at him again with several hand and knee strikes, "I wanna end this and get to my spa appointment!"

"Your spa appointment," Alpha hissed, "Shall be in your hell!"

With that, he leapt backwards and unleashed several _shuriken_, which the demoness dodged or slagged by flinging plasma at them. While she was distracted by his actions, he reached behind his back and removed the last of his poisoned spikes, smirking darkly as she skipped forward and drove a kick to his midsection. He dodged slightly to the slid forward into her, driving the spike upwards and slightly to her right side. The spike, like all of the spikes his ninja used, had a tip of incredibly hard, deadly sharp tungsten carbide. It easily slipped through Shego's blouse and upwards, settling in just above the liver and underneath her diaphragm.

When the pale green woman let out a grunt of pain, he knew she was already dead. He left the spike in and bounded back twice, his smirk easily visible through his mask. "It has been an honor to fight you, Shego-san, but I must bid you, as the French say, _adieu_..."

"Shay!" Alpha chuckled as he heard the blond haired buffoon call out his woman's name.

_He has gotten better, almost worthy of being invited this time..._ Alpha mused, flicking his eyes in Ron's direction, the blond standing atop the hood of the semi tractor. Ron had a horrified expression on his face, drawing a far darker sounding, almost hissing laugh from Alpha. His attention on Ron and Kim, who had just appeared beside him, Alpha made ready to leap away. He tensed to do just that when Shego's plasma flared brightly, catching him off guard. He raised a hand to protect his face from the brilliant display, and heard light footfalls next to him. He knew, by their gaits, that they were Alphas Three and Seven. He'd noticed the former stirring, so he must have regained consciousness and slipped around the cargo truck. The latter was bleeding from a slightly askew nose, but was otherwise unhurt. He was about to comment when the plasma heat faded somewhat...

Alpha was shocked to see Shego standing with his spike in her unlit hand. He glanced down and, to his immense shock, her plasma was flaring slightly from the wound, pulsing with her heartbeat. Even so, no blood coming from the wound, which he could see closing as he watched. _This is... New..._ he contemplated, then grimaced, _And _very_ troubling!_

"Poison, boy?" she snapped, holding the spike between her thumb and spread index and middle fingers. She starting to fold the spike in her hand, bending it about a centimeter off center before the high tensile strength metal it snapped like a pencil. Even so, she kept it held within her hands and, her hand flaring brilliantly before she tossed the slagged remains at Alpha's face. The man was so caught off guard that he could only flinch, the molten metal managed to strike his hood just above his eyes. The hood was not the cotton of the normal _shinobi shōzoku_, but was a blend of aramid fibers and nylon. The nylon almost immediately took to flame, forcing the ninja to remove his hood. "I'm going to end _you_ for even _trying_ that, you ugly sonuvabitch!"

"I think not!" Alpha snapped, reaching back for his weapon of last resort, one he was deadly proficient at, but loathed: a Walther PPS chambered in .40 S&W.

He had the firearm out of its holster and partway around his body when a voice that normally engendered disdain brought his body to a halt... And the sheer, hateful rage within that same voice chilled him to the bone. The voice belonged to Ron Stoppable, but there was an animalistic quality to it, and the ninja swore he heard monkey screeches underlying the one, drawn out word the blond screamed, "Fukushima!"

Agent Alpha, once known by that name, dodged back and to the side at the last possible second, shoving his ninja back with him. Ron landed in front of him, his eyes, feet and hands glowing a faint blue, the asphalt cracking where his fists struck the earth. Alpha hadn't even seen the blond move, only dodging by instinct when he'd seen the dented metal of the semi tractor's hood and Possible crouching to retain her footing. Alphas Three and Seven fell to their rear ends and scrambled underneath the semi's longer trailer, while Ron stood slowly. Speaking in slow, but clearly fluent Japanese, the blond hissed at his rival, "First you betray the school, and now you try and murder one of the the women I love with a poisoned spike?"

"So our school made you fully one of them, eh, Outsider?" Alpha taunted, ignoring his question while chuckling... And barely rolling out of the way as Ron lashed out with a foot stomp that split the asphalt once again. This time, Alpha was unable to completely dodge the attack, and fell, but into a roll that brought him up next to the rear of the trailer, "So we are, unfortunately, brother-..."

"You lost your place, standing and honor, let alone the _privilege_ of calling _anyone_ from Yamanouchi 'brother' or 'sister'!" Ron's voice was cold, and Alpha felt a shiver of worry when the blond ignored Kim and Shego, who were trying to calm him down with their words, "_You_ are the one titled Outsider now, and are worth less than the shit on the underside of my boots, but you must _pay_ for what you've done _before_ and the further dishonor you bring upon us _now_!"

"In case you forgot, Outsider," Alpha taunted, knowing that his men would either gather their heavy weapons or prepare their escape vehicles, "we're _ninja_, we fight to _win_! _Nothing_ else, you naïve child!"

"I'll show you naïve..." Ron started, when the sound of engines roared from within the trailer. Fukushima took the brief instant the sound distracted his opponents to reach into his jacket and remove a handful of smoke balls. He threw them down on the hard asphalt, then slipped to the other side of the trailer. He stood to the side as the left hand wall fell, then jumped up to don his own jetpack.

The other two ninja had done pre-flight for him, so he slammed his shoulders up into the pads, which activated the emergency lock in restraints. As soon as they showed green, he shouted, "Go!"

With a blast of jet engines, the three of them took off, and an instant later Ron burst through the right hand wall of the armored trailer. Alpha glanced back and felt a brief flare of relief that he was out of range. In Ron's hands was the glowing blue of a weapon that allowed Ron to effortlessly gain access to the rear of the truck: the Lotus Blade.

"Split up and meet in Marseille!" The two ninja nodded and split off, Alpha Three fingering a button on his control stalk. Alpha smirked and again glanced back, seeing Ron Stoppable dive out of the hole he'd created and dash towards the sports car, obviously hoping the shield would protect him. He felt a surge of disappointment when the car, seemingly of its own volition, surged forward and, as soon as the three heroes were next to it, activated its damnable shield. Not that it mattered... The worst that would have happened to the dolt was breathing in smoke from burned electronic components! _Well_, he contemplated with a wicked smirk, _perhaps the one hundred kilograms of CS gas might add to the discomfiture of our enemies!_ And allow any of their fellows that regained consciousness to slip away...

"Ah, well," he murmured towards the blond, who he could see was still watching him, "I shall enjoy our next meeting, Outsider... When I end your miserable existence and take what was rightfully mine _back_ from you!"

**Author's Notes**

And there we go. Almost fourteen thousand, nine hundred words including the Author's Foreword and Notes. Started out a bit slow, but then, as often happens for Team Possible Alpha, action! Confronted with an absolutely deadly situation on a busy autoroute, they nonetheless managed to come out ahead, with a minimum of civilian casualties. Unfortunately, this time, some of the bad guys paid the ultimate price. How will this affect team possible? As I have a tendency to say, only time will tell.

Then there's Team Possible Bravo, Team Impossible, the Middleton County Sheriff's Deputies and SWAT on scene... Looks like they almost got caught with the dastardly trap-trap! But it seems they were on the verge of taking the initiative! With Jim and Tim, at least temporarily, on the team to boot! How will they fare? That will be revealed soon!

And... _What_ in the _world_ happened in Prague? Betty Director singled out as a threat? Cloned? Is it real? Is it a well put together fake? Perhaps, but then again, the world may never know... And those mines were _very_ familiar, were they not?

And now we have the identity of the new and, until now, mysterious Agent Alpha. Who could have expected that? Not the team, nor Wade... Perhaps only one person had an idea outside of the WWEE... And he was unable to share his suspicions. That, as well, will be covered in the next couple of chapters.

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work! And sorry that I forgot my thanks for last chapter's beta... Anyway, remember, everyone: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Foreword**

Hey there, everyone! I'm back with another chapter, and I'm getting closer and closer to posting one per two weeks! Hopefully I can close that last gap soon. That said, however, I'm in the process of updating/revising/fixing continuity issues with Books I and II, fixes of which will be posted here and over on my "Archive Of Our Own" account, I might hit some delays here, as well… ^_^' Anyway, here's the review replies!

studyofchaos: thanks, glad you're continuing to enjoy! It does seem that way with Fukushima, doesn't it? And while he's been quiet for years in this, his reappearance in this manner is quite… Troubling, isn't it?

Rokigo: thanks! I've actually been working on improving the flow of my fight scenes quite a bit. As to the killing people… It's a fanon interpretation of canon, mostly. I, for one, tend to agree with it, considering how it seems Kim was raised… She also hates the sight of blood, remember. Shego had opportunities within canon to truly let loose, or situations in which killing would have made things easier… And never did. I have my own interpretation, and it will be explored more as the fic moves on. As to what Ron will do the next time he sees Fukushima? Well… As I always say, only time will tell.

Jimmy1201: heh, after this? He might just be considering something like that. And, yes, they are, and yes, yes, he was… As to the attackers, yes, they did suffer from attrition. As the old saying goes, it takes care of the idiots. With Ron being a sole survivor, well… Let's just hope that never happens, non?

Pharaoh Rutin Tutin: ironically, yes, there would, but there would be a glut in field services… Wait, there is one… Uh, oh, Will, as acting Director General, had best get to work on recruitment!

SliferRed: hey there, new reviewer! Thanks for the kind words, and I plan to. I hope you continue to enjoy!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"That was _awesome_!" Jesse, one of the two Wegos, exclaimed, James, his twin, following up with, "We kicked ass and took _names_!" The two had every reason to be so enthused, or at least they believed so. Team Go had been asked by the US Army and Global Justice to assist in an important mission, to protect a secret military research facility in Colorado, and had done so with flying colors! They were about to continue their impromptu celebration when one of their older brothers interrupted them with his own observation.

"And _someone_ didn't screw it all up, this time…" Jody said from the pilot's seat, glancing back from the normally closed access hatch between the cockpit and the rear areas of the Go Jet. His face bore a mix of surprise and honest pride in his voice as he looked at his elder brother, Greg, "Seriously, it was good to see you back in form, bro…"

"Was I _really_ all that bad?" Greg asked, covering his eyes with his hand… Something he hadn't done for years when receiving criticism.

"Yeah, you were." Jesse confirmed bluntly as Mego powered up the Go Jet, preparing to take off towards Middleton; they'd agreed to personally give an after action report to GJ's local agent in charge. In a surprising change, he continued before James could, "I know you say you don't remember, Greg, but you _really_ did some shit that hurt Shay! _You're_ the reason Harlan took such a dangerous deployment! _You're_ the rea-…"

"Jess, calm down!" James snapped. Jesse turned to his twin, who had slapped a hand over his mouth who nodded at Greg. Greg, their older brother, self-proclaimed toughest member of the group… Who not only looked like his heart was being ripped out, but was crying openly. Another thing he hadn't done since high school.

"Alright, what the hell, Greg?" Jesse snapped after shoving James' hand away. His words, while harsh, were softened by the honest worry that tinged his tone, "First you go from being all gung-ho, 'I'm a superhero, listen to me and don't you _dare_ go after Shego!' to 'The more we fought evil, the more she liked it…' to 'Guys, I'm sorry for being such an asshole for years, but I'm seeing a shrink and taking meds now, aren't you happy?'"

"Jesse?" Greg asked as he stared at the twin, who was nearly in tears when he finished his angry rant. He blinked, then walked over, enfolding his youngest brother - the younger of the twins by twenty minutes - in a hug without a thought. He felt his brother stiffen… And then, to everyone's shock, break down in body wracking sobs.

"Dammit, Greg!" Jesse bawled between sobs, "Wh-what happened t-to yo-you?"

"I don't know…" Greg sighed, tears of his own clouding his vision, "I… I wish I knew… Best I can figure? Well, me and my doc, that is… Well, we think that my… Spiritual advisor I used to speak to got under my skin…"

"That asshole that runs the Riverside Non-denominational Church?" Jody exclaimed, barely remembering to set the autopilot before spinning in his seat to glare at Greg.

"But…" James gasped, making the connection with wide, shocked eyes that were glassy with his own, as yet unshed tears, "You swore you stopped going to see him when he started that whole thing up when Shay was near the end of her freshman year! The protests about gay students and citizens and everything…"

"I…" Greg sighed, glancing past Jody and gazing into the sky above the horizon, "I know, guys…" Letting go of Jesse to let his arms hang down at his sides, he tried to turn away from the accusing gazes of his brothers. Jesse, however, didn't let go, just holding on and sniffling. _God, I've screwed them up _so_ much…_ he thought. Realizing his letting go had increased Jesse's stress, he placed his hands gently on his shoulders and pushed him back, then guided him to the ECM/ECCM panel and sat him down, leaving a hand on his shoulder.

This seemed to calm him somewhat, though he continued to sob quietly. Finally, he seemed to compose himself enough that he could wipe his eyes and gaze up at his eldest brother. "Then why?"

"I… Lied… About seeing him." Greg admitted, looking away once again, "He'd already convinced me to… Be like I was."

"Why, if…" James prodded, "If he was _poisoning_ you against us… Against _Shay_, of all people?"

Greg's face became a brilliant crimson, his shame visibly deepening, his eyes closing and a few tears spilling forth, "He… Said that I wasn't lying, but hiding the Lord's will from unbelievers…"

"And when Shay quit? When _you_ drove her away and _threatened_ the love of her life?" Jody prodded after a moment, drawing a deep sigh from Greg, "When we found out she was a card carrying villain?"

"I… I'd started down the path to became a villain myself, when I threatened Harley." Greg murmured in self-directed disgust, "And when I heard about Shay? I… I was on the edge of that cliff, one foot out and ready to leap. But… I wouldn't have, at least, not to my eyes… Not a _card carrying_ one, or a villain in the traditional sense." He swallowed as he felt their hard stares boring into him. Part of him wanted to keep his eyes closed, to screw them so tightly shut they'd never open, but he couldn't do that. _Not again…_ he thought firmly, _Never again!_

With that declaration firm in his mind, he forced his eyes open, the force of will needed almost a physical presence in the compartment. He swept his gaze across his brothers, holding their eyes each in turn as he spoke, "I almost followed that bastard's words, I… I'd have become, as he said, an avenging angel of holy retribution. I'd have… He had plans…" Greg swallowed his gorge visibly, sitting down next to Jesse, who was no longer crying, but staring in open mouth shock and worry, "He would have used me to… Attack people… Like Vivian Porter. Probably Shay's other female… Lovers. Eventually any unmarried couple, or those who were going through divorce. Porn stores and strip clubs… Gang bangers." Greg's eyes twitched and they all remembered seeing the newscast of his best high school friend being found dead not too long before, "Drug dealers, organized crime… Any government officials that weren't religiously affiliated…" He swallowed against his rising bile once again, before whispering, "Eventually? I would have attacked _anyone_ that didn't believe in the Word as they did, no matter how noble…"

"So that's why you're basically an atheist…" Jody concluded, earning a nod from Greg, "And why you shut yourself off so much from reality."

"Yeah…" Greg sighed, looking up at his siblings, "And, truthfully? Running into Shay when I came to visit your house back in July?" Jody nodded, remembering the argument that had resulted, "That's why I went to see the doc… Why I'm on meds…" He started, then pulled his GoComm out and checked the time. "Speaking of which…" With that, he stood and went back to the galley of the huge jet.

The GPS took the moment Greg stood to go off, indicating they were ten minutes from landing approach, "Okay, Greg… I'll tell you when we're preparing to land."

Jesse stood and glanced back, then smiled at Jody, "I'm going to go keep the big lug company."

"Go for it." James and Jody agreed, smiling. It was good to see Jesse seemed to accept his brother's change of heart. Jody flipped the switch that closed the access hatch and gave James a firm gaze, "D'you buy it?"

"Against my better judgement?" James asked in a searching tone, "Yeah, I do. I saw his eyes, Jo… He's hurting, confused…" He glanced back to the hatch, before looking forward and standing in the tight cockpit, moving awkwardly up to the copilot's seat, "Kinda… Well, kinda like how Shay looked the few times Jim and I saw her after she left… Like when we saw her casing the McManus Art Center, or when Aviarius stole our powers… Or even with the whole Electronique thing. But worse than Shay, y'know? Like…"

"Like she had no idea why she was acting like she was." Jody nodded, falling silent. They sat in that silence for several minutes, before the purple clad hero sighed, "D'you think the same asshole has something to do with this? Or maybe that…" He paused, his next word spat as a curse, "_Preacher_… Used the same device that was used on Kim and her father, and probably Shay?"

"Maybe…" James grimaced, "Dammit, I _hate_ being helpless like this! The Lorwardians weren't even this bad, and we had trouble even keeping them held back from the city center back home!"

"I know." Jody nodded in agreement, then sighed, "Should we ask Dr. Possible to take a look at his head?"

"If it's been going longer than it did with Shay, there's nothing we can do, you know… Just let time take its course."

"I know, Jim, I know," Jody sighed, "but at least then we'd _know_, we could _help_ him…"

"Yeah…" James nodded as they approached the northern outskirts of Middleton, their destination a staging area just east of the Middleton Institute of Science and Technology. _At least we'd know,_ the red clad hero contemplated, _at least we'd know…_

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Almost six and a half hours after the altercation outside of Lille, France, the three tired humans and their naked mole rat best bud drove towards Shay's apartment in Paris. They'd been silent for almost fifteen minutes, Kim, Ron and Rufus enjoying Paris in a manner they'd only twice had a chance to before. Unfortunately, one had been a quasi-mission, to get Ron's hair styled by François, world renown stylist, and the other was a minor disaster involving a love ray. Even so, the silence was comfortable, despite the day's trying afternoon. It had taken almost two hours to get the mess cleaned up and nearly another two for the authorities to get full statements from all the witnesses.

Unfortunately, about three quarters of the Alpha agents that had been there had managed to slip away when the CS gas hidden within the first trailer's floor had exploded, as well as half of the still living Betas. That was something that troubled Kim, but she felt fortunate that she hadn't actually seen any of the fatalities happen. She'd seen the aftermath of Beta Seven's collision with the Volvo, but thankfully, his bodysuit had kept the blood to a minimum. After some introspectino, she had to admit to being thankful it hadn't been the first body she'd seen, or even the first she'd seen at an accident scene. She'd have lost it on the way down, like she had after the first time a search and rescue mission she and Ron had taken had turned into search and recovery.

What bothered her the most was that it had happened _during_ a mission, even one that was sprung on them so suddenly… But, as she well knew, that was one of the disadvantages of working with Gemini. Fully half of the henchmen that'd worked for him had died, either on missions or due to failing in the madman's eyes. She was still dealing with the other deaths that had happened, and the injuries, but her mind was still compartmentalizing the whole sitch, something she'd learned after that one fateful mission. They'd all briefly spoken to Ron's - and now, apparently the team's - counselor, Ima Kopffall, and while they'd come through the sitch, she knew that they'd have to have a more intensive session with the woman later.

Then again, they'd gotten good news from back home before hitting the road again. Joss and Felix, with the help of Team Impossible, the Middleton County Sheriff's office and SWAT team, had prevailed against the Tweebs' attackers. They'd even overcome a surprise attack from a second squad of Deltas backed up by some _real_ Alpha agents that had been waiting in the wings. It had been close, though, and the robotics building at MIST had nearly been destroyed. Jim had a mild concussion, but was otherwise none the worse for wear. And… They had strong arguments for being made part of Team Possible Bravo. The red-head sighed softly, shaking her head in assurance when Shay looked over at her. "Just thinking about today, Lover…" she murmured, "And the talk we're going to have with Dr. Kopffall… I think, unless it's too much in the next couple hours, we can probably do it in the morning? Or… That'd be mid-afternoon here, right?" Shay nodded and Kim chuckled softly, "I know I'm so tired I'm going to sleep like a rock!"

Shay and Ron both made vague sounds of agreement, the older woman's attention on the road, and Ron's on their surroundings. She hoped she wasn't wrong about delaying the talk to the psychologist, though. The stress, and the fact that people had died was troubling to all of them, but Kim especially. Still, it would probably work out, since she'd been brought down from a pending panic attack, with the way Shay had handled things… Especially with the young woman who'd driven the Volvo. She'd assured the police that the situation was unavoidable, that the man was likely dead when Audrey had struck him… And then held the twenty year old when she'd broken down at the enormity of the entire mess.

Kim's meandering mind was brought back to the present as they went through the roundabout surrounding the _Colonne de Juillet_, the July Column, in the middle of the _Place de la Bastille_. She remembered Shay describing some of the things they'd see traveling to her apartment, and felt quite pleased that they had indeed passed such a notable historical landmark. Her lover had promised to take them here sometime during the weekend, so she only paid cursory attention to the square.

They were heading towards Shay's apartment in the quaintly historic, yet strikingly modern area known as _Le Maraisa_. The historical appearance of the area was beautiful, many of the buildings sporting facçades, or outright real architecture, straight from the early renaissance era. Those often sat sat beside modern looking buildings designed to blend in nearly seamlessly, though the older woman assured them there _were_ modern buildings with no pretension towards blending in.

They'd already passed dozens of small cafés and nightclubs, coffee houses and boutique shops of all sorts. Ron, despite the come down from the brief use of his MMP, the fight itself, and its aftermath, perked up when they approached a stoplight. Kim wasn't sure what he was seeing as he craned his neck back, but he answered her unvoiced question when he looked at Shay with wide eyes. "Did I just see a deli?" he asked, "I mean, as in, a real, _Jewish_ deli?"

"Yeah, ya did, Sport." Shay snickered as she came to a stop at the light. "They have some damn good food in there, too!" she chirped as she pointed back at the deli, just as a pair of men walked through the front door. They were dressed in garb that would identify them almost immediately as being Jewish, and were laughing as they spoke between themselves. They seemed to have acclimated to the eclectic surroundings quite well, as they didn't seem to bat an eye as they passed a gay couple, the young men arm in arm and obviously in love.

Kim started to pay more attention to the people in their surroundings as they drove deeper into the neighborhood. It was a couple minutes later when it struck her. Giving her lover a sidelong gaze, she raised an eyebrow, "So, Shay… Is the obvious gay community one of the reasons you got a place here?"

"Um, yeah…" the older woman blushed, earning a laugh from Ron and the sleepy Rufus, before adding defensively, "And people tend not to ask too many questions as long as you're not causing trouble!"

"Uh, huh…" Kim snickered, "There any exes here we have to worry about?"

The tone was teasing enough that Shay only winced at the perfectly delivered jibe. She sighed slightly and shook her head, "I was a bit wild in that way before I started working with Drew, Pumpkin… But all of them knew it wasn't anything long term, so, no… At least, I don't think so."

"Well, if that's the case," Kim smiled softly at her lover, "it's okay if we do. They were just, well, passing fancies…"

"Whereas we're tied together at the heartstrings…" Ron asked, surprising the other three occupants of the Sloth. He glanced around himself when he noticed the silence, blinking once, "What?"

"You're gettin' better, Sport." Shay smiled, leaning over and giving him a kiss, "That was one of the most romantic things I've heard in a _long_ time."

"Yup!" Kim agreed, leaning forward and holding her hand up. Ron reached his hand up and she grasped it with both of hers, kissing his knuckles, "Love you, Ronnie."

"Love you both…" he and Shay said at the same time, Shay adding, "Jinx, you owe me a backrub!"

"Yeah, yeah…" Ron chuckled, before sighing and looking back out of the Sloth's side window, his hand still held by both of Kim's. He seemed relaxed as he gazed sightlessly for a moment, "This is so weird… In an awesome way, but to have the two hottest women in the world as my girlfriends… I still half expect to wake up someti-eouch! Shay!"

"Not asleep, are ya?" Shay said with a smug grin, returning her hand to the wheel as the light turned green. Ron reached across his body to rub his injured left underarm, but was unable to help the smile on his face as he gazed at his and Kim's love.

"Nope, guess not…" he said at length, seeming to fall into some happy thought as they turned onto a narrow side street.

"The apartment's right up there…" Shay murmured, pointing at a gated parking area off of the street. The building, surprisingly, was somewhat separated from the others, a rather rare thing in the neighborhood, one of the oldest in Paris. It was obviously as old as many of those surrounding it, and was every bit as beautiful in its renaissance charm.

Although Shay had assured them that the area was quite safe, especially for a city as large and populated as France, she claimed the apartment building boasted some of the best security in Paris. It had recently been boosted by Shay's own skills, all for free, since she owned the top floor. That was, in part, thanks to the list of apartment renters and owners. They varied from regular people seeking what amounted to a sanctuary from life outside, to well off people that preferred to live closer to 'regular folk' - something Kim could somewhat understand, considering how monetarily rich her family actually was - to reclusive celebrities the pervasive Parisian paparazzi would pursue doggedly under other circumstances.

Kim had voiced her thankfulness for the latter when Shay had talked about the apartment; the fact that they were there _would_ spread, whether they liked the fact or not. That, of course, meant the paparazzi would eventually be hounding them. _Especially_ after coming out as a trio and the whole mess on the A1 near Lille! _Actually,_ Kim thought, _that would just be an excuse… We've had a few minor issues after that interview, and it would probably be a _lot_ worse here…_

That was presuming, of course, that the Parisian paparazzi were as bad as she was worried when it came to heroes. They were, theoretically, just as subject to the rules governing heroes and villains as anyone else, but… She shook her head as the Sloth stopped and Shay shut it down. _Stop thinking about it and worry about it when it happens!_ she snapped at herself, the tone much like the older woman's. This allowed her to chuckle lightly as she waited for Ron to pull his seat forward. Shay was already at the back of the car, removing their bags, giving a Kim a quizzical look at her laughter. Kim shrugged, joining Ron in stretching before walking back to her lover.

"Despite the age of the building, there _is_ an elevator," Shay said as they joined her, "And after today…"

"Fine by me." Kim interrupted softly, smiling slightly as she gazed upwards and stared at the waxing gibbous moon, "It's a beautiful night out…"

"Yeah, it is." Shay agreed, sighing softly as she hefted her bags, "Shall we?"

"Lead on!" Ron said as he lifted his and Kim's bags. The exterior of the building belied the interior, which was surprisingly modern in material and its minimalistic design. It was also spacious, which drew a thankful chuckle from Ron, "Wow, the hallways are as wide as some hotel hallways… Which is good, or I'd be stuck!"

"Believe it or not," Shay said quietly as they turned down a side hall towards the elevator, "this is the original floor plan, and the exterior is pretty much original, except for the tailor shop out front, and they had to fight to get the bigger window installed… The building was originally constructed in 1633. The owners are allowed to renovate the interior, but the exterior has to generally stay the same. In fact, the elevator used to be a wide spiral staircase, but not a particularly impressive one, so they didn't have to do much there when it was installed."

"Really?" Kim raised an eyebrow in surprise as Shay called the elevator, "Wow… This place must've cost a fortune!"

"Not really…" Shay said with a smirk, then stopped as the elevator doors opened. When they were all within and the doors closed, she pressed her finger to a spot above the fifth floor call button. A cosmetically invisible square lit up and the elevator moved into smooth motion before she continued, "The owner was having some financial difficulties with some repairs to the exterior, and I knew someone that'd do the work cheap if he got an apartment at a reduced rate… I might've offered a good chunk of my first _really_ big bodyguard job for my apartment on the sixth floor…" She paused, seeming to wait for Kim, Ron and Rufus to nod, before adding, "Or, maybe I should say… _For_ the sixth floor!"

"Wait…" Ron said, his face screwing up a moment before his mouth dropped open. Kim got the distinct impression that he'd have held a hand up and raised a finger if he wasn't holding most of their bags, "You're saying your apartment is the _whole_ sixth floor?"

"Yup!" Shay chirped as the elevator stopped and dinged, then glanced back with a smile so innocently sweet that it dripped falsehood, "Oh, did I say I had a _little_ apartment here?"

"You might've _implied_ that…" Kim responded in a droll tone before rolling her eyes, the jade depths sparkling in amusement. They walked down a hallway that was about four meters long and through an archway into into an octagonal room. She looked around the room with a critical eye. There were three archways leading to other hallways, one right and left, and one straight ahead. The hallway straight ahead shared the room's design, while the others seemed to transition easily into a more modern style, which Shay seemed to prefer, if her home in Amsterdam was any indication.

In overall design, the room was in the a Renaissance style similar to the outside of the building, but with more Classical and Baroque influences. The room was just over five meters wide from opposite corners, and each corner was adorned with fluted columns, with ornate base and crown moulding done in what appeared to be plaster. The domed ceiling was divided into eight quadrants by molded arches with intricate Baroque scrollwork, meeting at the apex. There a tasteful, satin finished chrome chandelier done in a Baroque style was hanging. The quality of workmanship was impeccable, and bordered on ostentatious and overdone.

However, the rest of the room tied it together into a lovely, elegant and welcoming statement. The wainscot was a meter in height, and was divided into two squares that were painted a deep, earthy red. The four corners of each panel was debossed in a deep green fleur-de-lis, connected along each edge by _embossed_ vines and leaves, again in deep green and all in the Baroque style. The walls above the wainscot were done in a soothing, pale off-white with incredibly fine, silver pinstripes, while the ceiling was a pale sky blue. The presence of a few real plants in strategic places somehow pulled it together perfectly. Kim stared for a full minute, noticing small details such as the letter for each cardinal point carved above each archway. It was so breathtaking that Kim almost missed the tile mosaic of a koi pond below their feet. "This room is _beautiful_!"

"Yeah…" Shay agreed, smiling, "It was the only room I left mostly alone, I call it the Cardinal Room 'cause of the compass directions above the archways." She pointed at the to the archways, earning a surprised grunt of understanding from Ron and Rufus, before pointing to the hallway across from them, "I brought in the person who originally did this room and his grandson to make a few modifications, then had them do that hall and the library… He was an old Jewish guy that survived Auschwitz–Birkenau." She paused for a moment, a fond smile on her face and her eyes distant, "He… Kinda became an unintentional grandfather figure to me, too, helped me settle in here in France after I got out of college, when I wasn't sure if I was gonna really go villain or not…" She shrugged, her eyes still a little distant, "He was too old to do the work directly, but his grandson's every bit as good as he used to be."

She sighed, smirking, "But I got a hell of a deal out of it! This was the old man's masterpiece, so I got a reduced rate and materials cost because he was able to show his grandson some of the tricks of the trade that're hard to teach in a workshop setting. And I 'dated' the kid for a while…" She chuckled as she threw up air quotes, "Mostly it was him showing me around town and getting his mom off his back, since he's about as gay as the blade."

"Hehe!" Rufus chuckled, then signed when their attention was on them, Shay translating for him, "And he showed you the best gay and lesbian bars in Paris."

"Pretty much." Shay chuckled, patting Rufus on the head, then hefting her bags from the floor and walking towards the south hallway, "The kitchen, living room and office are to the north, the exercise room, a small den, bedroom and master bath suite are this way."

The den that the south hallway entered was rather large, covering as much floor space as many mid-size, one bedroom apartments. As Kim had suspected from the hallway, it was modern almost to a fault. The walls were a soothing gunmetal bluish-gray, shot through with stripes of varying shades of the same color. The roof was a similar off white to the walls in the Cardinal Room, and reflected the half dozen bar lights in recessed enclosures near the roof in a soothing fashion. Smooth slate tile flooring was offset by black baseboards and a simple, half round crown molding and a black chrome furniture rail. There were two couches and two loveseats surrounding a two and a half by three meter rectangular glass coffee table with black chrome supports, all of which sat upon a positively massive Turkish carpet.

On the north, east and west walls were two paintings, each flanking the entrance to the room, while the south had one large painting between the two windows. The two paintings to the north were modern abstract affairs, while two classical looking paintings were next to the bedroom entrance. The bathroom door, however, was flanked by a pair of intricately painted, vertical Japanese wall scrolls in bamboo frames. In the northeast corner there was a small corner hutch with a few knick knacks, while the southwest wall had a high end entertainment system's remote interface. Kim was about to look for speakers when Ron drew her attention, "Wow…" Ron murmured, shaking his head, "This place is almost too much."

"Er…" Shay started, blushing slightly, "I hope the bedroom's not too much?" When Ron turned a raised eyebrow to her, she bit her lip in embarrassment, "I… Was kinda young and impulsive… I mean, it's… Well…" Her blush deepened when Kim glanced at her as well, "C'mon, you'll see!"

As they walked into the room, Kim's mind was conjuring all kinds of images, from something she wouldn't find out of place in the Arabian Nights tales to a huge canopy bed with hanging curtains in Shay's preferred colors, straight out of a sixteenth century lord's bedroom… Complete with servants. What she got was, in its own way, just as shocking, but far more… Juvenile than she'd expected. Not to mention looking incredibly cozy! "Coolio! Beanbags! And cushions everywhere!"

Ron's exuberant exclamation drew a giggle from Kim, and an groan from Shay that mixed amusement and honest embarrassment. Kim was the first to set her single bag down next to the door, followed by Ron dropping the rest of their bags unceremoniously next to it… Before literally diving into the nearest set of beanbags. "Oh, these are _nice_!" Ron enthused, rolling from one deep green beanbag to a black and red one, "And… This is real leather, too! Sweet!"

"Oh, God…" Shay moaned just loud enough for Kim to catch, before covering her eyes and shaking her head, a bit more mirth creeping into her tone.

Kim sniggered and slipped up behind her, earning a squeak of surprise as she put her arms around Shay's waist and went up on tip-toes to kiss the pale woman's neck. Then she whispered into Shay's ear. "It's kinda silly," Kim's tone was teasing, but serious at once, "but it also fits the way you described yourself at the time… And it _does_ look comfy in here!"

"Well…" Shay murmured, her blush fading as she let her bags slip from her fingers and resting her hands on Kim's, "It is, but… Um… Not many people have been in here aside from me…"

"Oh?" Kim prodded, resting her face against Shay's back, "I take it you usually kept guests in the living room or den?"

"Yeah," Shay blushed again, this time a lot deeper and a bit of shame crept into her tone, "I… Paris was kinda where I _really_ explored my love of women… I didn't bring more than a couple girls back here to the bedroom, and only did that 'cause I _knew_ could trust them, at least as far as not turning me in…" She sighed and turned in Kim's arms, biting her lip, "I know I said I didn't do too much… Playing the field before leaving Team Go… But here?" She sighed, looking away from Kim and Ron, focusing on a picture on her dresser, "I became a bit of a slut with women, and kinda easy with the men, Pumpkin. I had probably twenty-five… Wait, actually almost thirty." Shay's voice was a little tense from nervousness, which troubled Kim a bit. She had no idea why her lover would be nervous, since the older woman had told them she had a rather open sexual past, but she was glad to feel the tension leave the older woman when she let out a soft sigh, "That was out of forty-three women. And aside from those I trusted enough to bring back here, the rest were at their apartments or in the clubs."

"That explains why the only thing bothering you at the punk show in Munich was Ron not knowing?" Kim prodded with a soft chuckle in her voice.

"Yeah." Shay admitted, shrugging slightly, "But one thing I never did was bring any guys back here. If I didn't screw 'em in a cheap hotel or their place, they didn't get any." That drew, surprisingly to Shay, a chuckle and a nod from Ron, as if he'd almost expected it. "Still, there was only about fifteen guys in Paris that got that, so take that as you will." She shook her head and let out a soft chuckle, "Still, Ron's the only guy I've ever felt comfortable with up here, kinda weird, huh?"

"Maybe a little." Ron shrugged, before cocking his head to the side, "So what's up, Shay? You already told us you were wild back in Munich…"

"Just making sure you're okay with my past, Sport." Shay shrugged slightly, "Like I said a couple minutes ago, I was kind of a slut with women, and used to be pretty easy with guys…"

"So?" Kim asked, reaching up to turn Shay's face back to her, a soft smile on her face, "Thank you for being honest, Shay, but trust me, I don't think _any_ less of you for that…"

"Why should you?" Shay said with a raised eyebrow, but let a smirk through to show that she was simply teasing the formerly tightly-wound cheerleader.

"If I had to guess," Ron started as he stood and approached them, wrapping his arms around Shay and making her shiver as he kissed that ticklish spot only he seemed able to hit. The shiver that went through the former thief made Kim feel a shiver of her own, but she fought with her desire to focus on what Ron was saying, "I'd say she was worried _you_ might think she felt like that." When Shay glanced at him, he shrugged, "You seemed to tense up there when talking about it… I mean, I think it's badical that you've had better luck than most of the pretty boys back at MHS… And I'd bet money you had a _lot_ higher standards than them!" Kim and Shay both giggled softly, and the pale woman nodded at his assessment, having seen some of the seniors chasing girls when she was teaching as Miss Go.

"Besides, you've taught KP a few things to do with me by showing her, and I think they're awesome!" Ron's goofy grin made Shay relax completely, which relieved Kim. Ron's face becoming a positively evil smirk told Kim she'd missed something with Shay, but she let it go as Ron spoke, "And, I know it's been mentioned before… But we _both_ know Kim… _Appreciates_ your experience with the ladies…" Shay smirked and leaned forward to give him a quick peck on the lips, as Kim half exploded in an embarrassed giggle.

"Ron!" Kim squeaked, blushing brightly… Much to Shay's delight of course. Then Kim leaned around her and, despite the deep blush Ron's comment had drawn from her, raised a questioning eyebrow at her pale lover, "Well, doy! You… That thing you do… Um, y'know, that finger thing… With, er…"

"The _internal_ plasma massage?" Shay asked in a faux sweet tone, making Kim nod enthusiastically, "Yeah, I kinda learned that when the lover I had here in Paris and I were pleasing each other at the same time… Sasha, beautiful girl…"

"Speaking of plasma," Ron murmured in her ear, "You been holding back on just how good you are with it? That stuff you did back on the A-1 was pretty impressive… Though I was worried sick when I saw it pouring out of that wound on your belly!"

"How's that wound doing, by the way?" Kim asked before Shay was able to open her mouth, unclasping her hands and pulling the loose lower half of the polo shirt that they'd grabbed from Ron's bags - which had been on top of everything else - due to the damage to her sweater. She had a fleeting thought as her hand came to rest below Shay's breasts just how _tight_ the shirt was across that area, but shoved it aside with her concern for her love. She grazed her fingers over the almost invisible scar, which looked like it had been there for years, and would likely be gone by morning.

"Er… It's fine, Kim…" Shay flushed slightly, and Kim had a feeling it had more to do with her hands caressing her lover's belly than the question Ron had asked. She pulled away from Ron and Kim, flopping down in the closest beanbag with a huff. She coughed in slightly abashed nervousness at her actions when she noticed their gazes firmly planted upon her. "As for the plasma, well… I don't know. I know I can control it well without being stoned, but…" She glanced back at them, a wry smile on her face, "For some reason, when I'm stoned, I'm not nearly as nervous as normal when I light up. I don't worry about screwing up with it or shit like that."

"Wait…" Ron frowned, "You're saying that you… Tense up or something? Like a pitcher that's throwing the game winning or losing pitch?"

"Yeah, pretty much _just_ like that, actually." Shay sighed, frowning slightly, "And the thing is? I _don't_ know _why_! When I was younger, still gettin' used to it, I was fine, but after a certain point, I just… Started worrying about using it, every time I lit up…"

"Well…" Kim frowned slightly, "_I_, for one, have noticed that you're less and less tense using it since… Oh, I dunno? With hindsight I wanna say around the time Avarius stole your powers, but honestly, I only ever _really_ noticed around the time you were Miss Go." Kim thought for a moment, while Shay grimaced, "Yeah… And you've gotten less and less tense since then, steadily…" She glanced down at her lover's scar, still visible since her shirt had ridden up when she flopped into the beanbag. With a sigh, Kim took the beanbag next to her, but lay down so she was lying across Shay's lap, staring up into the enchanting eyes above her with a worried expression, "Still doesn't explain how the plasma came out of the wound, or why it's healing even faster than other wounds you've had…"

"That's because using the plasma on wounds from the inside heals me faster than my normal healing, Pumpkin." Shay said dryly, a slight smirk on her face. Kim bit her lips in an attempt to stifle a giggle, which drew a more natural smile from Shay, who leaned down to give her a peck on the lips. When she drew back, however, her face became more pensive, "I used to do it when I was a teen, 'cause I was even more reckless back then than I am now, but… It became too… Unpredictable not long before my pregnancy, and only ever happens anymore when I'm baked…" She paused for a moment of thought, then chuckled, "Or when I'm in the middle of the munchies. Before I'm high, or afterwards? I…" She gazed at her hands, raising them and lighting them up with about the same amount of heat as one would use for massage oils, "Small things, like this, or the sexual play? That's one thing, 'cause I'm barely controlling the heat and there's barely any kinetic energy. When I have to be as exacting as I do with healing? Or like when I blew the wheel and hitch off of that trailer while both vehicles are moving at different speeds?"

Her plasma snuffed out, then flared and guttered with random heat, acting more like a small campfire than before. As Kim watched, she noticed the borrowed polo shirt's loose bottom buffeting in random spikes of kinetic discharge. "I almost completely freeze up just _thinking_ about it! I can _barely_ control something as simple as this, let alone the healing aspect of it! Hell, I _tense_ up whenever I toss it; I worry about using too much heat or kinetic power and hurting someone, if not killing them. Or not using _enough_ and failing to do whatever it is I'm trying to do, or that I'll miss…"

She cut off her plasma, dropped her hands and closed her eyes, leaning back in her beanbag and sighing, her face contorted in frustration. Kim hesitated, but then reached out and took one of the limp hands in her own, squeezing it, Ron mirroring her move an instant later. When Shay looked up and regarded them, Kim asked reluctantly, "Shay… Um… This sounds like about the same time you started having issues with Hego, right?" Shay nodded, her eyebrows drawing together slightly, "And… My mom, Drew and Wade kinda guessed that you weren't even twenty yet when _your_ problems started…" Kim paused, then pursed her lips, "At least, that's when they guess your brain was messed with like mine and my dad's were."

Shay blinked then frowned, obviously thinking back to that time in her life. After a few moments of silence, she began to speak, her tone that of someone thinking aloud more than anything, "Well… I was in GCU at eighteen… I managed to have a semester cut off, so I actually graduated _before_ Hego…" She paused again, her frown deepening, "He was fine with that, actually taking me around to the various campuses whenever he could over our high school's spring semester… I checked out Colorado State U in Boulder, Upperton U, Montana State up in Bozeman, Southern Utah U… Hell, I had a scholarship to GCU and Arizona State, and since I had a short window to do my entrance shit, I went to Arizona and Hego stayed in Go City… When I got back, he was all hyper about GCU, told me some things about it that sorta made my decision for me."

"Like wha'?" Rufus squeaked, drawing Shay's attention to the present.

"Oh, the curriculum, how cool Old Man McDermott was…" She flushed when another thought struck her, "He might have mentioned that Vivi was doin' her masters at GCU before finishing at either MIST or MIT…" Everyone, even Shay, laughed at that piece of information, leaving Shay with a smile on her face, however fleeting before once again frowning, "Then we went there together, and he introduced me to a few people…" She glanced at Kim, "That's when I met Slocomb the first time, by the way… Neither Hego or I liked him at _all_! We also met some asshat later on that knew about my relationship with Vivi. Hego took him aside and talked to him though, bu-…" She stopped with her mouth open to speak again. It was as if something had occurred to her, but remained just out of reach.

"Shay?" Kim and Ron called out, both squeezing her hands.

"Sorry…" Shay's eyebrows crept together, before she shook her head in frustration, "That was pretty much the last time Hego did anything for me like a _real_ big brother would." She shrugged, then went on in a more subdued tone, "Anyway, I'd always had really fine control over my power, even better than I did earlier today when I was still half baked! But, about a week later, after choosing GCU, something happened on a mission… I tried blasting this goon, a henchman for this asshat that was trying to set a bomb in city hall… In the nursery…" She let out a half-growl of indignation, but continued, "Anyway, I missed the first couple shots 'cause he was jumping around kinda like Kimmie, acting all gacked out, y'know? The plasma hit the wall, no harm, no foul, it'd happened before when they dodged… Then he pulled out a taser and tried to hit me; I got pissed, _really_ bad, dodged him, then slammed a lit up punch into his gut… It blasted his bulletproof vest open, hurt him pretty bad."

She sighed and glanced between her lover and her boyfriend, "I found out later if I hadn't been using fairly low powered blasts, I could have blown the whole building to hell and back. I missed the bombs by, oh, an inch or two." Kim and Ron's eyes widened in shock, "Thing is? That room was supposed to be empty, at least according to Hego… And he was ripping me up one side and down the other about hurting the goon. I'd hit some others kinda hard in the past when we had no choice, just like that time! But he'd never, _ever_ said anything like that before! That's when I first laid into him about being an unobservant idiot…"

"First real fight?" Kim asked, cocking her head.

"Or first fight about how to be a hero?" Ron added.

"Honestly?" Shay looked confused, "To the best of my memories, yeah, it was… On both counts." She shook herself like a dog shaking off water, "I threw myself into school, started that summer, told Hego to only call me if it was truly life and death… For the most part, he did, but he did drag me out of Slocomb's math class a few times, and Mrs. Dunlap's English Comp. class twice…" She let out a sharp, derisive bark of laughter, "I spent most of my time at Vivi's place. I mean, I still went home from time to time… But it… It just got worse and _worse_ at the tower that semester, so I took full class loads all year and fully moved in with Vivi. Then I got the call from Harley that he might be back that winter, and Hego… I dunno, he straightened up for a while? But my worries remained about the powers… And then Harley came back, and everything got better and better… And you kinda know the rest… Except, well… Other than the light stuff, like the massage or light shows?" She lit her hands to make her point, the glow low and comfortingly warm, "Using my powers became harder and harder, as far as doing the crazy shit I used to… Except when I'm stoned."

"Sounds like it might have something to do with all this…" Ron mused, looking at Kim, "Should we ask Wade, Drew or your mom if any of the problems with her brain chemistry being altered had anything to do with her powers?"

"Well," Kim murmured, tapping her forefinger against her chin as she thought, "it's entirely possible that if whatever was used on you _is_ affecting your powers, too, that the pot's temporarily bypassing the screwed up parts of your mind, or has you so relaxed that your worries are gone and the altered parts of your brain can't affect your powers." Kim saw Shay's face freeze a bit and she pouted slightly, "Hey, Shay, I don't mean it like that. Take me for example… I have to be cognisant of how much power I'm delivering when fighting henchmen, or where I'm delivering the blows while sparring, right?" Shay frowned slightly but nodded, "Same with you, or Ron… But I don't let it control my martial arts, none of us do, right?" Shay nodded, her frown disappearing and a more thoughtful look taking its place, "So what if whoever messed with your brain messed with your powers, too? By making you so paranoid you're scared to use them without pausing to think about it? I mean, you're dangerous even if your pauses are really short, but it could've made you pause at the wrong moments, right? And it's like you don't have a choice about it, you're _always_ thinking about it, except when you're stoned, even in a situation where you shouldn't have to."

"I… I get what you're saying, Pumpkin, but…" Shay shook her head, sighing in frustration. She doused her flames and ran her fingers through her hair vigorously, "But this all came about so _naturally_! I mean, it was right aft-…"

"Right after a near accident, where Hego missed something in another room." Kim nodded, "Just like I was when Ron and I had gotten off of a string of missions over a weekend we were _supposed_ to be spending together as a romantic, just us thing, but we ended up stuck at home with Ron giving me a massage… Just in time for Daddy to barge into our place unannounced and flipped out on us. It felt natural, like it'd been building for months… But only my dad and I knew it."

Shay stared at Kim, several of the pieces falling into place as she thought about it, "Do you… Do you think that same person might've gotten to Hego?"

"Most likelimundo, Hot Hands." Ron smiled slightly when Shay turned a half-annoyed, half-amused expression towards him, "It makes sense, right? He goes from, as even you claimed, being an awesome older bro to being a complete jerk… And then he forgets about everything that happened within a couple years? Then he's suddenly back to almost normal and apologizing for being a jerk?" Ron shook his head, "No way that's natural, and that's not even me being paranoid or all conspiracy nut here! After it happened to KP and Mr. Dr. P., it just makes sense!" The blond shook his head, continuing solemnly, "We're talkin' five hundred miles of bad road kinda sense…"

"Maybe we should call Wade, Drew and Kimmie's mom," Shay murmured, "Ask them if it's possible…"

"We will." Kim assured her, "In fact, I know we were gonna put it off, but this has me worrying about things, I… I think we should call and talk to Dr. Kopffall, too…"

"I'm fine…" Ron and Shay said at once, then started almost as if shocked by a stun baton. They glanced at each other, then, sheepishly, back at Kim. Shay finally spoke up, her tone chagrined, "Er… You may be right, Kimmie…"

"Yeah." Ron admitted as Rufus jumped over to Kim's knee and nodded in vigorous agreement.

"How 'bout after we get something to eat and a shower or something, though?" Shay begged hopefully.

"I _think_ Ronnie and I wouldn't mind taking a shower with you…" Kim tittered softly, though the salacious gleam in her eyes belied the seeming innocence of her expression, "In _fact_, I think the shower should be _first_!"

"I'm down!" Ron chirped, acting as if it had to be said.

"Well, there's also the whirlpool tub…" Shay waited until Ron paused and turned to look over his shoulder at her. Smiling seductively, she grabbed his shoulders and pressed her breasts firmly into his back, "It might be a bit more… _Relaxing_… Than the shower…"

Kim barely kept herself from giggling when the toiletries bags fell from Ron's grasp…

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Acting Director Du!" Global Justice European Director Gerard Depardieu called out, waving worriedly at the Acting Director General of Global Justice. Will had just stepped into the Prague warehouse that was secretly owned by GJ, used as a safe staging area, or more rarely, an ad hoc forensics lab. It was not huge, as far as warehouses went, but it was nonetheless about the size of eight standard two car garages. It was just large enough to house the portable forensics lab, portable, secure staff meeting room and portable GJ CIC truck and the topic of their presence, two vehicles and three bodies.

The former GJ Second Agent glanced about him at the warehouse, and the mess that was presented within. Two vehicles, or what was left of them and what could be found on the scene, were laid out on the floor, with forensics agents pouring over the bits and pieces. One was a black Mercedes S-Class sedan… Or, at least, parts of it were. The smaller pieces that had blown off in the explosion were, indeed, dark, even those not charred by fire. But the main hulk that remained was a mottled mix of charred steel and an almost leopard print pattern of black and white.

Next to that vehicle, laid out in plastic 'clean tents', were two charred bodies and the remains of another. One of the bodies was rather large with glints of steel about its right lower arm and left eye. On the far side of the clean tents was the remains of a big cargo truck. The cab of the truck was intact, as well as half of the floor of the cargo box. The rest of the box, however, was devastated, only leaving the left hand wall and rear door intact. The rest of the box had been either ripped apart by two Russian made MON-200 mines or burned by the fire when the Mercedes had been blown up. From the preliminary report Will had received, the driver, a Russian émigré, had survived and was still being held for questioning.

Will grimaced at the scene and turned his attention back to Director Depardieu. The portly man, as usual wearing a jumpsuit that appeared rumpled despite bearing non-regulation tailoring, ran over to Will. Though the European director was overweight, Will knew the man possessed incredible power in his frame. His apparent clumsy, overweight trundle was as misleading as his apparent obesity; however, an eye trained in keen observation or trained by martial arts - of which Will had both - could see the smooth, efficient movements designed purely to throw off one's expectations. _Everything_ about the man screamed that he was an ineffectual fop that had earned his position through politics or family connections.

Will knew that was far from the truth. That very same deceptive mode of dress and bearing had saved the man before him numerous occasions in the past and likely would in the future. Will shook off his thoughts as he held his hand out. "Director Depardieu." He nodded, then glanced back at the woman in a GJ uniform behind him. She wore an assault suit, and while it didn't hide her distinctly feminine hips or bosom, it did hide her face and hair. "Agent Barrett here was sent with me as a combination of backup and bodyguard. She's been cleared to hear everything I can."

Gerard nodded his head at the newcomer, though there was a flash of near recognition in his eyes, which made him stare for a brief moment. Will's brief sigh as he glanced forward and towards the forensics team drew Gerard's attention back to him, however, "Status report, Director Depardieu?"

"Worse than we presumed at first, Director Du." Gerard grimaced, walking towards the CIC truck, which sat between the noses of the two vehicles. Will fell in beside him, while the apparent French GJ agent and the two that had escorted the woman and Will to the warehouse fell in step behind her. Gerard gestured towards the cargo van, "The driver, from what we've managed to gather, was a member of the Moiseyev Bratva."

"The same group that Gemini was working with in Amsterdam?" Will asked in surprise, his eyebrows shooting up towards his hairline, "The ones trying to take out Atcherkamp and Balisteri?"

"The very same…" Gerard glanced around, then signaled the head of forensics. The forensics head then signaled another of his agents, and both made their way over as Gerard held the door for Will and his companion. They both ascended into the CIC van, where Will was surprised to see both Senior Instructor Simmons - wearing GJEU Second Agent pips, implying he was an acting European Second Agent - and GJ Chief of Internal Affairs, Internal Affairs Agent Aleta Eggen.

The inside of the truck was rather typical of such a vehicle. Three walls were mostly covered with communications, ECM, ECCM and other equipment, with just enough space to get around the three by one and a half meter wide, hologram capable table in the center. As soon as the forensics people were in the truck, Durant closed the doors and took his place at the table, which was to Will's left. Will stood at the head of the table, with Agent Barrett to his right. Agent Simmons and Agent Eggan were to Durrant's left and Agent Barrett's right, respectively. At the foot of the table, the forensics agents took their places, the lead speaking without preamble, "Acting Director Du, I am the Central European Forensics Director, Ansel Rettig, and this is Agent Gretta Simpson, the forensics lead that found the most important part of this investigation." He paused for a moment. The pause could have been an ironic display of dramatics, but Will could see that the man was trying to settle on just how he wanted to say something. After a moment, Agent Rettig shrugged and sighed, "We have a major problem, Acting Director Du."

"So I can see." Will murmured dryly, "I've got the prelims, large bomb blast in Prague, no civilians except those in a Mercedes sedan injured, and… That's about all I've heard?"

The head of forensics winced slightly at how little information they'd had to give him. He sighed, shrugging slightly, "My apologies, Director Du, but I'm sure you'll understand just _why_ the information was so sketchy shortly." He waved over to Agent Eggen, "It was actually Agent Eggen's suggestion…" He reached down and typed a few commands into the table. The surface, which also doubled as a presentation surface for non-holographic information, lit up and displayed the bodies in the clean tents outside, "As you probably guessed, we've managed to recover enough non-burned flesh to establish the identities of the victims via DNA."

Will nodded, "I would hope you'd have already done so, although," he tapped the larger of the two _relatively_ intact bodies, which was highlighted in gold, "This I am presuming is supposed to be Gemini?"

"Yes." Agent Rettig nodded, then tapped the body to the right, highlighting it in blue, "This is former GJ Agent Klaus Bader; he was kicked out of GJ about three years ago for spying, ostensibly for the German government…"

Agent Eggen spoke up, "In truth, he was working as what amounts as a quadruple agent… He worked for the German government, supposedly spying on GJ for assurances that Germany's national security interests were being properly served. For HenchCo, he was working for them to try and get various gadgets for them to reverse engineer. He then approached us, claiming that HenchCo had approached _him_, and that he could feed them false information. Ultimately, however, his loyalties laid with Gemini."

"And he was Agent Alpha… One, as I remember?" If Agent Eggen was surprised by his knowledge, she didn't show it, "And who, then, left these remains behind?"

"The material left indicates a third body, but one that, according to blood and burnt bodily material left at or near the scene, escaped." Agent Rettig sighed, then gestured to Agent Simpson, "Gretta, if you would?"

"When we managed to isolate viable test material from the bodies in the vehicle, as well as the blood left leaving the vehicle." Agent Simpson sighed out, "Upon isolating viable test material, we immediately proceeded with DNA testing. Of course, we confirmed the first two, but the third we had to find more samples and perform more… Stringent tests. After the tests finished, we confirmed the identity of the third, presumably alive, person…" She tapped a few commands and the test results came up with ninety-seven point three seven percent assurance, "Dr. Betty Director."

"How many people know the results you ran, Agent Simpson?" Agent Simmons asked.

"Aside from those in this trailer? No one." Agent Simpson replied simply, "When I got the results the first time, I sealed the testing unit and called Agent Rittig before double checking them."

"Good." Will nodded, as if he'd expected it. Glancing over at Gerard, he raised an eyebrow. The portly man sighed and shrugged, as if he was unsure how to proceed. With a sigh, Will made the hardest decision he'd had to make to date, "Agent Simpson, Agent Rittig, normally I'd ask you to wait outside for a few moments…" Both agents blinked, Will giving them a brief, oddly chilling smile as he continued, "However, you're in on this from the start, it seems. I'm about to reveal two things that are, no offense, _way_ above your pay grades."

"I have Omega-Three clearance…" Agent Ritting murmured. His tone, however, was not that of a man objecting to Will's comment, so much as digesting the implications.

"Exactly." Will confirmed, nodding in understanding. "First off, there are no pieces of Dr. Director's bodyparts in the clean tent. I have two levels of proof, one of which is an even bigger secret than anything you'll find in America's Area 51." With that, he signaled to Agent Barrett, before speaking again, "If word of what you're about to witness ever leaks, you can guarantee yourselves a very troubled life."

Everyone except for Durant and Agent Eggen gasped, and both of them seemed quite shocked. There, next to Will, stood Dr. Betty Director… Sans eyepatch. Her right eye, like her left, seemed to be in perfect working order. Durant was the first to speak, and it was with a voice that shook with relief, "Betty, thank God you're alive!"

The room exploded in a confused mass of questions, not even Will, who was experienced at picking specifics out of a crowd, could easily keep up. The questions ranged from the seemingly innocuous, "What, how?" to the outright demand of, "Explain yourself, _Acting_ Director Du!"

Will allowed the questions to run for a moment, allowing them to just start dying down before slamming his palm into the tabletop, "Ladies and gentlemen, please!"

That's when Agent Eggen spoke up, "Are we certain this is Dr. Director?"

"Yes." Gerard and Will confirmed, Will continuing a moment later while pointing at Betty's hale and whole right eye, "This, ladies and gentlemen, is quite possibly the closest guarded secret in the world; the fact that _both_ of Betty Director's eyes are intact. It is not only a technique she uses to keep night vision when technology fails, but also a last ditch identifier, that whoever took her place for the last several weeks apparently did not know."

"Whe-…" Agent Eggen started again, but Betty held up a hand.

"I'm sorry, Agent Eggen," she smiled with honest apology, "But while I know you have questions to me, we have work to do. Fortunately, or unfortunately depending on your perspective, my doppelgänger seems to have cleaned house of all of the WWEE's moles. In so doing, I'm sure she managed to clear out other moles, or at least make them nervous enough to be noticed?" Agent Eggen nodded, then frowned, as if realizing that the situation required paranoia in Betty's presence, "Good. I am removed from the chain of command, but I have very important information. As well, I _would_ like my position back, as likely short as I'll remain in it afterwards, so I hope you can vet me as soon as possible."

"I'm sure that we can, Dr. Director." Agent Eggen mused, before shaking her head, "But I have a feeling that this is going to be a trying evening."

"And that vetting process is why I've kept Agents Rittig and Simpson in here," Will turned to address them, "I need you to work up some way to not only decode, but to _detect_ the differences between Dr. Director's genetic sequence and the material recovered from that body sitting out there." He glanced over at Betty and grimaced, "And, unfortunately, Betty, the location where you woke up and found LW-001 was clean."

"Damn." Betty growled, letting out a huff of annoyance, "I was hoping…" She sighed and shook her head, smirking wryly, "More trouble for Agent Eggen's trying day, I supposed."

"Indeed." Will agreed, "Team Possible Alpha was jumped in France by WWEE Alpha and Beta agents, confirming my suspicion that the rogue ninja known as Fukushima has escaped with Gemini's help, and was given Agent Alpha status." Agent Eggen, Durant and Betty all winced, while Agent Simmons merely looked stoic and Agents Simpson and Rittig stared in mild confusion, "As well, the WWEE Delta Squad - with the remnants of Theta and a few members of Alpha still within the United States folded into it - seems to be operating independently of Alpha and Beta. It is unknown who else is with Tripe's Deltas, but we have solid intel that Alpha and Beta are being joined by the remnants of Epsilon, Zeta and Eta. Considering Gamma and Iota are US based, I have a feeling they'll join with Delta…"

"Not to interrupt," Agent Eggen ventured worriedly, "but when can I get to work on vetting Dr. Director?"

Will smiled, shaking his head in understanding, "I ordered the Truth Ray mk. III sent over from Porter, Lipsky and Load, LLC. via high speed transport. It should be here within the next hour or so."

"Good." Agent Eggen sighed in relief, "No offense, Acting Director, but I'd like to get at least _some_ stability back in the command structure after the last month…" He glanced at Betty, who wore the look of someone that knew her time in command was short, and shrugged, "For as long as the powers that be allow that stability to maintain, to paraphrase Dr. Director."

"Indeed." Will agreed, then plugged his phone into the nearest USB port, holding his thumb to the screen, "And speaking of Lipsky and Load, I think we should bring them in on this." With that, he pressed the call, enter and number keys, opening the dedicated Kimmunicator communications line, "I think we'll need their help tracking down the bad guys…"

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"Please don't take this wrong, Professor," the Mathter couldn't help but let an ironic smile twist his lips as he addressed the man walking behind him, "is it necessary for all of _this_ to be sitting out so early in the project? After all, according to your formula, he won't be needing them for, what, five to six years?"

"Projected full maturity is roughly seventy to seventy four months." Professor Mindbender chortled softly, before looking over at the indicated items, "As for the… Memorabilia? Yes." Mindbender waited for a few beats, before his lips could be seen twisting in a smirk of his own through his mask, "Mainly because they're not for what's in the vat, but for your opinion of his likely reaction to seeing them… And how many of his memories will be recovered by each item."

"Do you have the projected memory recovery, access and retention matrix I asked you for?" Mathter prodded, his tone teasing, but with a edge of dire seriousness.

"Yes," Mindbender nodded, his bearing now more serious as he approached the bench next to a gestation tank that Drew Lipsky would find very, very familiar, "As you can see, my… Contact… Managed to capture about eighty-five percent of his active long term memories while his brain was still mostly alive. Somehow, by some force of serendipity, my contact also managed to map ninety-some-odd percent of the chemically encoded long term memories. So, fully, ninety-seven point three percent of all of his memories. Unfortunately, I need to know which he will be able to remember upon waking, how much he will remember in the fashion of an amnesiac, how many he may regain access via natural healing from something like a traumatic brain injury and median term suffocation - equal to about five minutes - and which of those I can safely discard. I also need to know which of these items will help him remember, and how much those will grant him access to."

"Let me look over what you have." Mathter said, picking up the thick binder detailing the project. He rifled through them, most of them merely progress reports on the project's various stages. "Does this include information about the speed of this clone's growth?"

"I'll explain that, but everything else you wanted to know is in section twelve." Mindbender murmured, walking over to the tank. He brushed off external condensation and looked upon the nude form within, seeing a healthy seventeen month old baby boy. He had a thick thatch of hair, though his features were the soft ones of a baby; his chin was soft and round, his cheekbones barely prominent, his jawline was jowly and his ears were rather large. Mindbender knew, however, that the man the child would become would grow into the ears by the equivalent of his tenth birthday, the only thing that would remain through adulthood would be his hair color and the shape of his nose. "To answer your question from the last time we discussed this plan… The reason we're growing him so slowly is that we don't want him to dissolve the first time he drinks a soda or eats a salad with vinegar on it! That was Drakken's one major flaw: lack of patience. Had he grown his clones over the course of a year, maybe a little less, they'd have been proof against that. We're taking this long term path so we can assure he is as close to a perfect match as we can get, and that we can fix anything his brain picks up to make it a blank slate. About 4 months of accelerated growth to one month of real time seems optimal, and it'll make him a perfect replica of his original self."

"And will make this project's endgame more certain…" Mathter muttered while nodding, seemingly thinking aloud, before turning back to Mindbender, "Should we continue this in the office?"

"I suppose so." Mindbender agreed easily, eager for the chance to remove his mask, even if for a short time.

A moment later, the report was opened and several pages had been removed from the binder, set in a fashion that important information was adjacent to each other. Without preamble, the Mathter began speaking, alternately moving his fingers as if using an abacus and marking the papers with a highlighter in turn, "From the information in the report, his memories up to his seventeenth year will only have a few holes, the kind expected of a man in his twenties. From his seventeenth year on, based on your researcher's information, his memories will have more holes… Ironically, most, if not all, of his training will be intact; this will likely be due to the sheer volume of training, much like muscle memory for experienced martial artists. His relationship based memories - family, friends, significant others and etcetera, will be more hit and miss, which fits within the theory of partial amnesia brought upon by a traumatic brain injury and suffocation due to lack of bloodflow. At least as far as my quick calculations, your plans correlate with your researcher's conclusions.

"That said, however," he indicated another section of the paperwork, "these memories, the ones that were recorded as chemically stable, but not electrically active? They will present the most problems, both for him _and_ for us, if we use him as we planned…"

"How so?" Mindbender asked simply, sighing out in relief as he removed the comfortable but confining mask, "And do try to make it quick, little brother… We have a meeting in an hour!"

"So you would like me to _sum_ it up?" Mindbender nodded, rolling his eyes slightly and chuckling at his own rare admission of familial connection between them. "Very well, but let me get comfortable as well." With that, the villain removed his own headpiece, scrubbing at his well kempt but, thanks to the headpiece, mussy red hair, "Okay… Quite frankly, how fast his brain reestablishes the various connections - if it can, at all - will determine how thoroughly he will remember everything. The reading of his brainscans indicate a forty percent probability that he'll remember everything before we wake him. However, upon waking, the presence of _any_ of those items will give a repair certainty of about fifty-three percent. The items that will likely be of the most benefit will be the memorabilia from his training days, including the ring, the picture and that printout." Mindbender nodded, "And… I'd say that dream charm, too. Are we still going to use Plan Gamma?"

Mindbender remained silent at the question, but the Mathter allowed him to remain so, as he seemed to be meditating. While he may have better math skills than his big brother, the man was an insanely detailed, and patient, plotter. At length, Mindbender shook his head to snap himself out of his light meditation and gazed at the Mathter, smiling in a positively evil fashion, "Yes, I think that is best, but with scenario twelve." The Mathter raised an eyebrow, more unfamiliar with that plan than the others, "Moving him to location Alpha-Alpha-Three-Two, waking him, and then getting him onto a transport… Which will be 'taken over' by 'representatives of a US government black project', which he will be a 'guest' of… Then dosing him in sedatives, and allowing him to wake up from time to time, just enough for him to catch the dates… We'll also have a few mindless clones, with paperwork detailing how they'd been successfully mindwiped, and a few others that I had other contacts kidnap and put in a similar situation already."

"Oh, yes…" the Mathter nodded as his own memory was spurred, "Aside from the risk of using them - I'm still uncomfortable using MIA and KIA soldiers, governments involved tend to frown on that - there are _still_ the problems of him waking up and recovering his memories quickly even with our interference… But we need those items… And perhaps that journal that your contact found?"

"The journal can be arranged, though I was enjoying reading how my plans were going off without a hitch at the time…" He sighed, "Ah, well, we have years, so I can enjoy it for a time! As to the plan, the base should be laid at that point in time, and all of the evidence we need planted in the appropriate locations." Mindbender paused and tapped the desk firmly, "Just make sure the electronic evidence is planted on site, and not through the Internet!" The Mathter nodded; they both knew that Mindbender was speaking it aloud and tapping the desk so he'd remember before it was too late. "Anyway… Presuming nothing untoward happens before then, we're set. But remember, this plan can _not_ fail! This is all to break the spirits of three strong willed people, and bring at least one of them back into the fold! He doesn't have to have all his memories… In fact, I think _lacking_ some of those memories will be for the best!"

"According to the notes," the Mathter countered, "Most of his relationship based memories are intact, just… Bits and pieces will be… Inaccessible. But they will resurface, eventually."

"Which will be useful when _they_ find the information on the site he was held. It will support his story and will earn sympathy. It should also add a positively stifling amount of stress, because that goody-goody bitch will _have_ to take him in-…" A beep from the intercom interrupted him, drawing a sigh from him as he accepted the call from his secretary.

"Professor? Mr. Hench needs to see you and the Mathter about a few things before the meeting." Mindbender smirked, glancing at the Mathter, who shared a matching smirk with him.

"Very well, Alice," Mindbender called out, "Tell him we'll be there in five minutes."

"I shall, sir." she replied.

"One more thing, Alice?" Mindbender said, waiting for her acknowledgement, "Did Mr. Hench say what it was about?"

"Only in generalities, sir." Alice replied once again, before cutting the circuit, "But he did say that the Gemini problem might have been solved by his Russian friends thanks to his own recent, rather overt aggressiveness. He wants the opinions of yourself and Mr. Mathter on the situation before the board meeting." With that, she closed the connection.

"Ah, her discretion is great…" Mindbender smirked, his eyes slightly distant as he pulled his facemask back into place,

"So is the volume of her rack." the Mathter smirked back, which belied his deadpan tone. "Though the quotient of her intellect, as well as that discretion, is just as fetching." Mindbender nodded in agreement as the Mathter donned his headpiece.

"I won't complain about either, to be sure!" Mindbender chuckled, "And it seems your prediction about the Moiseyev Bratva's response to Gemini's apparent betrayal was spot on."

"I had little doubt, with the statistical probabilities in our favor…" the Mathter chuckled as well, "I do wonder if he survived?"

"We can hope not!" Mindbender managed, barely, to stifle a villainous laugh. Instead, he merely walked towards the door to the office, his gaze falling onto the still infant boy growing in the tank. _You're going to help me, you goofy looking little putz…_ the professor thought with a positively evil gleam in his eyes, _Whether you know it or not!_

**Author's Notes**

And there we go! Seems like Team Go's coming back into their own! But, then, Hego seems to be suffering a lot more than he was letting on… With his brothers on board to help him, though, it seems like he's changing for the better.

Then we have Shego inviting her loves into her Paris home. Quite the spectacular - if somewhat disjointed (how about that bedroom?) - place! Then again, she was quite young when she got it, non? And, of course, she'd choose a place that would be comfortable to all three of them, especially with Kim's so recently public declaration of her own love for everyone's favorite former thief.

Will and Betty dropped one _hell_ of a bombshell on their compatriots, didn't they? But, if that's really Betty, who is the one that apparently escaped? And who would have the audacity to attack one of Kim's most dangerous villains so blatantly?

And finally, we have Mindbender and the Mathter, plotting… Something. And, wait… They're _brothers_? How unexpected was _that_? And they have a long term plan, for going after someone. Who, and who is it they're trying to use against whoever it is? Only time will tell…

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work! Remember, everyone: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Foreword**

Hey there, everyone, sorry for the delay, but my flow/feel beta was quite busy with RL, plus there was Independence Day here in the 'States.

As well, there is a scene in this fic that bears a striking resemblance to the excellent painting "Hello" by Mineiti on DeviantArt. Unfortunately, the scene as I present it here was blocked out in writing literally months (January of 2012) before I saw that pic on DeviantArt, which was - to the best of my knowledge - about a month after it was uploaded by the artist. Just thought I'd let anyone know that I wasn't ripping of his excellent painting, though unfortunately, I'd love to claim I was inspired by an excellent piece. Do go check out his art, it's excellent!

Other than the hiccups that real life throws at us all, however, I'm generally back on track. Unfortunately, this brings me to a tough decision: I'm in the process of revising both existing books of Vacation from the Norm. I will be posting them both here as a new story and over on Archive of our Own (AO3). That said, I'm wondering if I should go back and revise everything before posting my next chapter (could take a couple months) or just keep goin' with both (the revisions will take longer, but I won't stop until Book II is done). As well, I may end up truncating many of the existing chapters (not all, since some of them are best left contiguous as is, just with some revision), but plan on keeping all content. This will make the number of chapters going higher but won't affect the word count much (the revisions will, of course, but I'll try not to do too much). What do you, my readers, think? I'm personally leaning towards continuing Book II while revising, personally, but I do want your feedback. You can tell me via review or PM, as you'd like. ^_^

And now, review replies!

Jimmy1201: crime and her life as a mercenary both, indeed did pay well. As for the shower, well... Hey, he's gotta grow up sometime, non? Yes, he is patient, and yes, someone's messed with quite a few people. As for a couple more chapters? I have Book _III_ planned out in my poor, befuddled and all-too-random brain, so you _could_ say there's a couple more chapters waiting!

Rokigo: uneventful and necessary, indeed. Unfortunately, sometimes life is slow, and while I try not to bog down the writing, it's how I've grown into writing as an author. Glad you liked it, nonetheless!

HairyLimey: thanks, dude! That made me grin like an idiot and almost blush, and while I - as many that come from an artist's background - tend to consider my writing sub-par, I appreciate the praise! ^_^

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Kim sighed happily as she finished up the bacon, egg and cheese burrito Shay had made for the three of them while Ron had showered. She licked her lips and glanced over at her fiancé where he stood looking out of the window of Shay's... Of _their_ Paris apartment. The concept, one she was still getting used to, made the red-head smile and look sightlessly back down at her Mk. IV Kimmunicator, remembering something from the prior evening when they'd spoken to Dr. Kopffall. They'd called her from the library, and when she'd asked about it, Kim had mentioned it was Shay's apartment. When Shay had adamantly reminded her that everything she had was Ron and Kim's, it had started a distinctly different conversation between them and the psychologist than what the call was originally for.

Granted, they'd still spoken to her about the deaths that had happened in Lille, but it had gone quite well. It still bothered them, obviously, but after spending the prior day recovering from the trip from Amsterdam to Paris, and staying in the whole day just to decompress, it had been easier to talk about and come to terms with. Even if they hadn't needed to deal with the events of the prior day, they'd have probably stayed in anyway! The apartment was amazing, with an even bigger workout area than the Amsterdam home and a kitchen that Ron had compared favorably to the one at Señor Senior, Sr.'s villa. They'd also had a great time watching movies on Shay's living room entertainment system... Though, to Kim's regret, they hadn't broken in the bathroom.

They'd decided the day before to go and explore the neighborhood around the apartment, which had Kim feeling quite hyper. It helped that the day had dawned warm and bright. Birds out and chirping happily away in the positively balmy - for Paris in mid-October - twenty-one degrees Celsius. The sky was partly cloudy, but the clouds were of the fluffy, pleasant variety that Kim loved. The noonday sun streamed in the large window, only visible because the heavy drapes had been pulled back and the blinds moved aside. While that only left their privacy to the high quality tint on the window proper, Ron didn't seem worried about anyone spying on them; Shay had assured them they were covered in _truly_ one-way tint, and he was wearing his cargo pants. Kim, on the other hand, was enjoying the freedom of walking around their shared apartment in the buff, something that she'd have never considered, but their girlfriend had drawn out of the both of them.

"It's a beautiful day out..." Ron said in a serene tone, unconsciously mirroring Kim's thoughts as he glanced back at her, openly admiring what he saw. She was laying back in one of the beanbag chairs, nude except for the towel wrapped around her hair. He held up his old, red jersey, a teasing smirk touching the edges of his lips, "You sure you're okay with me wearing my old standby?"

"Doy!" Kim said with a chuckle, gazing up from her Kimmunicator, "According to the blogosphere in Paris, we're big news." She shrugged at Ron's raised eyebrows, her smile becoming a bit strained, "And ironically, dressing casual will probably shift attention away from us, since the last several times we've been seen, we've been pretty dressy..."

"Good point, KP!" Ron chuckled, slipping on his old red jersey, giving Kim an unobstructed view of his impressive and, to her, perfect body.

That's when she noticed he hadn't slipped on the long sleeved, navy shirt he used to wear under it, "Aren't you going to feel a bit underdressed, Ronnie?"

"Nah," Ron answered, "it's kinda warm out, and I don't want to _force_ a shower before we go to dinner tonight just 'cause I'm a bit ripe..."

"Oh?" Kim prodded, setting the Kimmunicator aside and standing, before tossing the towel into the hamper nearby and sauntering over to him with a nice sway to her hips, "Aside from our timing waking up this morning, I thought you'd _jump_ at the chance to get a shower together later..."

"Well..." Ron drew out as Kim slid her hands under his jersey and placed her hands on his chest, his arms circling her waist, "I said I didn't want to _force_ a shower, KP... As for going willingly? That's a _whole_ 'nother issue!"

"That _better_ be the case!" Kim hissed in a mockingly severe tone, curling her hands in a clawlike fashion and raking her fingernails down his chest lightly before resting her hands on his firm belly, "I've been _enjoying_ my morning Ronshine in the shower..."

"Oh, you don't get enough Ronshine from our nightly showers, Princess?" Shay's voice called from the den between the bedroom and bathroom, drawing the teens' attention.

"No, do you?" Kim asked, letting out a sigh of pleasure as Ron moved his hands down to squeeze her rear. She looked back at him and leaned up, giving him an intense kiss for his action.

"Jury's still out on needing _that_ much Ronshine," Shay called out teasingly as she walked from the bathroom towards the bedroom, drawing a snort from Ron as he and Kim leaned back from each other a bit, still gazing into each other's eyes, "but I know I missed my Kimness this morning, so a shower this afternoon sounds good..."

"I can't wait!" Ron chirped, earning a tickle to his sides from Kim. The tickling didn't last more than a second as Shay swept into the room, again drawing Kim and Ron's attention.

"What do ya think?" Shay asked as she did a little twirl to show herself off. She wore a deep maroon colored strapless summer dress that went down to just above her mid thigh. The color, a medium-dark yellow, worked in an oddly complementary fashion to Shay's pale complexion. While the dress itself was cut so that it followed her curves nicely, it had plenty of motion and flow. That allowed the twirl to flare her skirt out and show off her nicely toned rear and the boyshorts that were just a shade lighter than her own skin. The hem and neckline had narrow lace edges, and when the dress fell back to its natural drape, drew attention to her long, athletic legs and allowed a tantalizing view of her cleavage. The back of the dress had a scallop that went just low enough to hint at her sexy, well defined back.

"Badical!" Ron offered, his eyes sweeping up and down her body before giving a low, approving whistle.

"Woo!" Rufus called from his travel cage, giving two thumbs up.

"Uh, huh." Kim muttered stupidly, her jaw hanging open in a mix of surprise and heartfelt desire as she stared at her lover. Shay blushed and bit her lip at the reaction her outfit had garnered, and Kim finally swallowed against the tightness in her throat to murmur, "Wow..."

At that simple announcement, Shay's eyebrows drew together and her eyes drooped, the expression making her look like a hungry cat. The look was heightened when she slinked forward and slipped up behind Kim, her hands sliding around Kim's waist and under Ron's arms. Her left hand slid up to gently cup the very underside of Kim's right breast, while her right gently trailed through the 'KP' trimmed into Kim's mostly bare mons. With the barest hint of a chuckle, the former thief moulded herself to Kim's body, which pressed Ron's hands more firmly into her rear. When Ron leaned forward to gently nibble at her neck, a small, almost protesting whine escaped from Kim's throat. "Just 'Wow...'?" Shay teased, leaning in to whisper into Kim's ear, almost humming in pleasure as Ron's hands pressed against _her_ mons, "Y'like what you see, hmmm, Cupcake?"

"Wha?" Kim blinked, the sensations driving her to delicious distraction. Shaking her head a bit, she leaned back into Shay to try and look up at her. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, the older woman teased the top crease of her labia, making Kim close her eyes and moan softly, squirming at the tantalizing sensations her lovers' fingers sent through her body. "S-Shay... D-do I have to e-... Even digni-..." The older woman's fingers dipped a bit lower and applied knowledgeable pressure just beside her clit, drawing a gasp from the red-head and an approving growl from Ron. To avoid stuttering, Kim finished in a rushed squeak, her words blending together almost unintelligibly, "Dignify that with a response?"

"I dunno, Kimmie," Ron chuckled, his breath tickling her neck, the use of Shay's pet name driving her arousal up a notch. "I guess..." he continued, raising a hand up her left side with teasing softness, while he interrupted each word with a brief pause as he kissed his way down her heaving chest. "Your reactions... Could be... Saying..." He began to nip at her flesh the lower he moved, and the lower he moved, the further his hips moved from hers. The further away his hips slid, and the more pressure Shay applied to her clit. Before he was halfway to her chest, his nips were almost bites, and his hands were kneading with almost painful firmness on her ass, "A lot more... Than words... Ever could?"

As he finished, his hand reached her left breast, his thumb and forefinger squeezing with firm, sharp pressure while seemingly trying to suckle her whole right breast into his mouth. The sensations from her breasts, while painful to most women - Shay included - actually served to spur Kim's arousal. The addition of softly pulsing kinetic plasma on the red-head's hard and oh-so-sensitive clitorus intensified things dramatically, making her gasp and mewl, her body shaking in a sure sign of an impending orgasm. Then, incongruously, her mind latched onto the fact that they _had_ been planning on going out so Shay could show them around the neighborhood.

Almost against her will, her mouth opened and she gasped out, "I t-thought you were... Were going to show us-ss... A-around today, S-Shay?" Swallowing against the physical and emotional tension building within her, she added, "B-but if you two k-keep this up, I'm... G-God, I'm going to make a m-mess all o-over all of u-us!" She followed her declaration with a low, deep moan, _God _damn_ I'm _so_ friggin' close!_

"Mmmm..." Shay murmured in agreement, the tone of her voice snapping Kim's eyes open almost as fast as the lessening of the plasmic massage she'd been delivering. Kim's eyes widened in horror as Shay smiled down at Ron in seeming complete sincerity. "She has a point, Ronnie..."

"Hmph..." Ron blinked up at her in seeming incomprehension. Then the pressure of Ron's right fingers lessened on the stiff peak of her nipple, his suckling breaking completely as he answered, "I forgot... But she has a point; if we start this, we'll have to change, and shower, and by the time we got all done with that, it'd almost be time to go to the clubs!"

"Guys?" Kim pleaded as she paled slightly. She shoved her hips forward to try and get more pressure from Shay's finger. Unfortunately for her, the woman's palm was placed firmly against Kim's pubic bone, keeping her fingers at a pressure _she_ wanted to give to Kim, much to the heroine's dismay, "C'mon..."

"Yeah, Shay, c'mon!" Ron agreed with her. She almost smiled at him, but then she felt his hands on her hips, pushing her back against Shay again with a glint in his eyes that made her whimper, "I mean, you'd better let Kim get dressed..." he glanced down and gave a smirk that wouldn't have looked out of place on Shay's lips, "Well, cleaned up and dressed..."

"No!" Kim hissed at him, squirming even more against her lovers, "Please, just... I'm _so_ close, guys, can you _please_ finish me?" She heard them chuckle and a small knot of worry formed in the pit of her stomach. She _knew_ they were just as aroused as she was! She'd felt Shay's hard nipples on her back despite the bra and dress, and had felt, and could _still see_ Ron's swollen member tenting his cargo pants.

"Payback's a bitch, Kimmie," Shay murmured in her ear, "But I'm worse..." With a dark chuckle, Shay slid her left hand up and, to Kim's surprise, roughly cupped her left breast, tweaking the nipple with a firm, twisting squeeze, "Not only did _you_ get some some from Ronnie this morning, while I didn't any from _either_ of you, you _teased_ me after you took your shower! I think I'll just _leave_ you like this and keep teasing you..." She began to stroke Kim again, one slow stroke each time she spoke, Kim moaning as each one drew her closer to a climax she knew would be powerful, "All... Day... Long... If... I... Have... To..."

"You wouldn-..." Kim started, but was silenced as Shay leaned over her shoulder and captured her lips, the older woman's tongue gently probing her mouth with gentle caresses.

After a several seconds Shay pulled back, her right fingers tracing up Kim's mostly bare pubic triangle to rest on the point of her hips. The action drew a long shiver from Kim, but with some difficulty, she held back a protest, which Shay noticed, "Good girl... And, yes, I _would_..." She captured Kim's lips again, for a few seconds, before breathing softly, "And I _am_..."

"You're horrible..." Kim moaned in protest as Shay let go of her and stood back just enough for Kim to turn around. Rufus chittered out some laughter that Kim ignored, her attention on her lover, who was staring at her with an openly wanton expression. Kim had a good idea as to why: she was flushed, her chest was heaving, and a sheen of sweat covered her body, and Shay had mentioned several times how arousing she found that look on her. That very openness drew a grumble from the painfully aroused a red-head, and she looked down at the floor in annoyed embarrassment, "That's _so_ evil!"

Shay laughed delightedly, reaching out to caress Kim's cheek and draw her gaze upwards. "You can take the woman away from her evil deeds, Pumpkin," she whispered, leaning in to give her younger lover a peck on the lips, "but you can't take the evil completely out of the woman."

"Besides," Ron chuckled as he came up behind Kim, planting a soft kiss to her shoulder, "you and I _both_ know we love that bit of evil in our girlfriend..."

"Shut up, Ronnie!" Kim said, but couldn't quite keep the agreeing giggle out of her voice as she turned on him, leaning up to kiss him softly. She'd have tried for more, but his hands were on her hips and holding her in place, which drew an annoyed whine from her.

"Sorry, KP," Ron snickered, "You know I _like_ teasing you, and with how much Shay _loves_ it..." Kim frowned as he shrugged, then began to sink her face into her infamous puppy dog pout. Ron beat her to the punch, however, by digging his thumbs into the crease between her legs and her mons pubis. The action made her squeal and giggle against her will, before finally jumping back and glaring at him, "Besides, it's only for a few hours..."

With a huff, she relented to their decision with an angry, frustrated pout, "Okay, _fine_! I'll go clean up and get dressed..."

"We'll be cleaning up in the kitchen, Princess." Shay called with a far too innocent expression on her face.

As Kim stomped her way to the bathroom to once again clean herself off, Ron leaned in and whispered into Shay's ear, "Wanna have a li'l fun while she's busy?"

Shay raised an eyebrow questioningly, though she didn't bother to hide the smirk that replaced her over-the-top, sweetness-and-innocence smile, "Like what?"

"I didn't get a chance for some pumpkin pie before her shower..." Ron murmured, his bland expression and delivery drawing a playful snicker from Shay, "And I'm sure you'd like the edge taken off before we deal with KP tonight..."

"Mmmm..." Shay murmured, surprising him by capturing his lips in a heated, if brief, kiss. When she broke away, her smirk errily similar to the old, evil smirk she's wore when they'd first met, "Seems like I'm not the _only_ team member with an evil streak..."

"Hey, I like my Key lime pie, too." Ron said, smiling as she blushed despite herself.

To hide her delighted embarrassment, she rolled her eyes and scoffed, before grabbing him and dragging him along, "Well, let's go, Sport!"

That said, the two dashed out of the bedroom as quietly as they could, just in time to hear the showerhead being removed from its holder. Rufus, forgotten by the two humans shook his head in a mix of consternation and amusement, wondering if he should just prepare to watch TV in the den when they came back. Giving one last glance towards the bedroom door, he shook his head, a stray thought making him giggle briefly, _I wonder how things will be when Ron and Shay start copulating, too..._

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

She was hungry. Hungry and tired and hurt and _lonely_! Hungry because the automatic food dispenser wasn't working. Lonely because her Mistress had been - except for two woefully brief appearances - gone for four whole months! And the first of the last two times she'd seen her Mistress, Mistress had been distracted and angry about something and barely paid attention to her! She'd thought she'd done something wrong, and angered her Mistress, but the servants, especially Gerald, her best friend among her Mistress' servants, had assured her she was fine, and Mistress was just busy.

And, yes, she normally wouldn't be lonely, with her Mistress' servants to keep her company... But her Mistress seemed to have lost interest in her, and that hurt, and led her to be so lonely. She _loved_ her Mistress, and had _known_ that her Mistress loved her, at least until the second of her last visits. Then Gerard had told her Mistress was coming home, and would be so happy to see her that she'd purred almost a whole morning!

But then... Then a woman had come to her Mistress' home, and Gerard said it was the Mistress. But she hadn't smelled like her Mistress, but... But she _had_ smelled like Mistress, too! So she'd smelled... Wrong. Off. Yet right. It confused her _so_ much, especially when the woman Gerard had called Mistress had spoken. Her voice had been wrong, _all_ wrong! It had sounded lower, as if used to yelling, and harder. Well, at least at first. Then, when she'd balked at the hand of the woman who was her maybe-Mistress, the voice had become right.

She'd jumped up into her Mistress' arms, purring her delight and love at the woman, and that love had been returned! Well, mostly... But she'd been distracted again! And then she'd smelled something odd in her Mistress' scent, a scent she found almost completely foreign to her: sadness and fear. That was terribly odd, and wrong! Those were scents she'd _never_ smelled on her Mistress since her Mistress' parents had, as the humans said, disowned her. It worried her, because her Mistress was normally so _strong_! Even when she had been put in the _different_ place, where she couldn't follow her Mistress, after Mistress had been caught going against the Human Greater Pride's rules, she'd only detected worry, not sadness or fear.

And then her Mistress had started talking nonsense! About how she had to go away for a while, how she hoped she'd be back, eventually, but had something important to do. Something _so_ important that she might _die_ in the process. Then her Mistress had offered her to Gerald, and she'd accepted, as she _did_ like Gerald. But when she'd looked at her Mistress, begging for an answer, she discovered that the answer would never come. Something else that Mistress had never done, hiding something from her! Then... Then her Mistress had scared her to the bone by crying as she left, as if she knew she'd be gone forever!

But, since she'd passed leadership over her to Gerald, she'd gone home with him. She wouldn't consider him her new Master, not yet; she still loved Mistress above all others, but she had at least given him leadership, but only as one would with a friend among the pride that was more capable. And humans _were_, she hated to admit, more capable of things. Like feeding her water and delicious food and keeping her waste box clean. At least he'd taken the automatic food and water machine, since he'd be gone for long stretches to take care of Mistress' home. She didn't mind, the sound of the machine was a comforting familiarity to her. Things had been fine for almost two weeks when the men and women in blue jumpsuits had come, asking Gerald to come with them to answer some questions about Mistress!

He'd given her the warning to hide, and had told them that he had to set up the food and water dispenser for her. They'd agreed, one of the men had come in with him. The man had been big and fat and _very_ unkempt looking. But, underneath the fragrance he wore, he had smelled very healthy, unlike most big men like him. After setting things up, Gerald had done something that surprised her by activating the automatic kitty door for her. It was somehow tied to her fancy collar, a way for her to approach the door and leave or enter, but no other animals could. She liked it, as it allowed her to go outside to the roof of the building he lived in. She knew not to go too far, of course, despite her Mistress having lived in this city for some time. After all, there were other cats out there, mean ones, and _dogs_, all of which might hurt her. And that didn't even take into account the mean people that could do worse, too!

But now, Gerald had been gone for two days, and she was again worried, and the food dispenser was either empty or broken. On the first day Gerald had been gone, the fat man had come back with another man, a taller, thinner man that her Mistress would have found _very_ attractive. They'd called out to her, with the name her Mistress had given her, but she'd held firm. Gerald's warning was one he'd worked out with Mistress, and it told her to hide unless and until Mistress or one of the servants came to call to her. The tall man's voice was so soothing, though, sounding a lot like Mistress' father's voice in tone and accent. Then he'd called someone, a person that looked like Mistress had when she'd looked and smelled not-quite-wrong!

But the woman hadn't called out, so she'd held firm, though it had been even closer than the man calling her. And now, it had been two full days since, and she was outside standing on the roof of the building. She had a great view of the street below, and the park surrounded by buildings across that street. She was just about to go back inside and play with her scratching post and hangy strings, to distract herself from her worry, when she spotted four someones across the way that were familiar!

The thief Shego, who she knew of from TV and her Mistress' ranting about that 'prison' thing, Kim Possible, who had stopped her Mistress from violating the Human Greater Pride's rules, and Ron Stoppable, who owned the only rat she liked, Rufus and Rufus himself! They could help her, she _knew_ they could! And as much as she liked the naked mole rat, she knew that he didn't return her feelings, but she _also_ knew he believed in helping out, just like his Master and Mistress!

She just had to convince him that she meant no harm, and that she didn't want to rekindle the one sided love affair she'd desired. With a despondent groan, she thought about how to approach them. After all, if she came out openly, they might not listen to her. But she couldn't be _too_ sneaky, or she'd end up making things worse! But they _were_ in the park, and there were all of those trees over there...

Maybe she could get Rufus' attention from one, and have a conversation with him first? Maybe he could convince them all to listen and help her out?

She nodded in agreement with that plan. Carefully, she descended the street face of the building, and seeing that the street was clear of cars, dashed across. Carefully making her way towards the center of the park square, she climbed up a tree and waited. While she wasn't the most patient feline in the world, Debutante would _not_ fail to get help for Gerald... And maybe her Mistress!

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Shay bit her lip to keep from laughing at Kim's antics while they walked to the _Place des Vosges_. The red-head was still hyper, and in an effort to calm down, or so she claimed, she had the punk band Pennywise half blaring out of her huge, custom made headphones. At least, they were huge to Shay's eyes, not to mention loud as hell, since the music was clear despite them being around her lover's neck. From what she could tell, they were of the exacting quality she'd discovered her lover demanded of audio devices, which drew another near chuckle from her.

Shay hoped that their jaunt would calm the overly-precocious teen down. Their first stop was a beautifully kept square, and the former thief loved it, both for its shadetree park and the beautiful architecture surrounding it. It was calming, the small art galleries in the surrounding buildings tended to be interesting and some of the food was quite good.

The security consultant allowed a smile to blossom when Ron deflected the jade eyed ball of energy for the fifth time. She'd been trying to find out why Shay wasn't as on edge as she was, and was apparently petulant enough to be on the verge of begging on her hands and knees. His newest evasion was accomplished by pointing out another trio sitting hand in hand on a bench and enjoying the unseasonably warm day. Unlike the three of them, this trio was a male-male-female trio. The woman was fairly plain looking, and rather chunky, but had an attractive air about her. She was walking with two rather fetching men, one younger than her and the other older by about the same difference as Shay had to Kim and Ron. They seemed oblivious to the outside world, lost in their mutual admiration.

"That's _ferociously_ sweet!" Kim enthused, a big smile on her face as she reached out for both Ron and Shay's hands. As her lovers reciprocated the gesture, she turned a smirk to Ron and raised an eyebrow, "And don't think you got away with distracting me!" Ron winced at the declaration, reaching up with his free hand to rub the back of his neck self consciously, a sheepish chuckle escaping his lips.

"Me, distracting?" he asked as Kim continued to stare at him levelly, "That's just something I do on missions, right?"

Rufus, hanging out of his familiar old pocket, laughed and chirped, "Bust'd!"

"Yeah, yeah..." Ron sighed, then gave Shay a wink before looking back at Kim, "Um, what was it you were asking, KP?"

"I was asking," Kim muttered in a rather flat tone, "if you and Shay did something while I was cleaning up and getting dressed."

"Oh, _that_!" Ron barked a laugh of obviously false humor, earning an elbow in the gut from Kim. He let out a whoosh of air, using his free hand to rub his belly and giving Kim a sour look for a moment, before again laughing sheepishly. He coughed nervously as Kim kept her level gaze focused on him, glancing about as if looking for help. Shay shook her head to let him know she wouldn't help him out, again biting her lip to keep from saying anything. She did, after all, want to see how Ron handled the red-head after the state they'd left her in at the apartment. "Well, you know how much I love eating-..." he looked around, suddenly conscious of others in the area "Er, pumpkin pie, right?" Kim flushed but nodded, and he continued with a wink, "And if you noticed, I didn't get to this morning, right?"

Kim made a strangled sound of embarrassment and nodded, the flush becoming a rather brilliant flush, while trying to hide her face behind her hair. It seemed she was only now realizing that, indeed, she hadn't given him time to do that. The reaction drew a snicker from Shay, and she glanced over Kim's bowed head to wink at Ron, who winked back. _Nicely done, Doofus..._

"Well, anyway," Ron continued, a big smile on his face, "since Shay didn't get any today, and both of us did but I didn't get to do that..."

"But..." Kim protested in a comically quiet, protesting squeak, a look that was half-annoyance, half-sheepish realization on her face as she glanced between them, "I was just excited to head out, I didn't even... We could have wai-..."

"Nah," Shay said in a dryly level, if amused tone, "we wouldn't have left the apartment if we'd've stayed in, and today's _perfect_ for visiting the _Place des Vosges_..." She pulled Kim's hand up and kissed her knuckles gently, her eyes sparkling with both mischief and love for the younger woman, "Trust me, Kimmie, you'll _love_ it!"

Kim sighed and grumbled a bit before leaning into Shay's shoulder, dragging Ron closer to her before shifting her balance and leaning against his shoulder for a moment. Shay had been confused for a moment, then realized it was, essentially, a gesture much like a hug had the red-head's arms been free. With a big sigh, she "Okay, sorry I teased you Shay, but I didn't know you'd be so horny..."

"Princess," Shay laughed delightedly, before laying her head against Kim's and purring out to her, "if you haven't noticed, I'm as easy to get goin' as you are..."

"Okay, fine!" Kim surrendered, though the laugh in her tone took any potential sting out of her loud delivery, "I'll stop moping..." She waited for a moment before adding, "So long as you two promise we'll shower _together_ later..."

"Doy!" Shay and Ron said at the same time. The laughter between the three of them and Rufus was soft, but drew smiles from most of the passing pedestrians. A few gave dismissive or disgruntled expressions, which drew a soft sigh from Kim, but Shay ignored them. If they were jealous, they should get their own hot girl and boyfriend; if they found it disgusting, well, they didn't have to watch them like hawks.

Before Shay could get annoyed thinking about people who wanted to stick their noses into her business, they rounded a familiar building. Smiling, she gently pulled on Kim's hand and nodded to their right, "There it is, guys."

"Oh, wow..." Kim murmured as they rounded the building fully. The square the park resided in was about one hundred and forty meters across, and the park proper was a little over one hundred. Except for a break along each 'face' of the park were trees cut into a square shape, with benches underneath them, offering a resting place in the shade. Barely visible from their position across the narrow street was the tops of much taller trees growing in a circular section in the center of the park, where a statue of a man on a horse was visible. Halfway between each corner and the statue were four fountains. While fairly small, it was inviting and quite lovely, which drew a smile from Kim, "This place seems..." Kim cocked her head slightly, her face screwing up as she sought the word she wanted to use. A brief moment of contemplation later, she smiled once again, "It's peaceful, despite how many people are here."

"That's why I love it, Princess." Shay chuckled, squeezing her hand three times, "And I love you."

"Love you both." Kim said, smiling impishly up at her pale lover.

"Love ya both too." Ron chuckled as they made their way into the park proper, dropping each others hands when walking through the gates. The park had perhaps forty people in it, but wasn't crowded in the least. "Hey, I'm going to go check out that statue of that guy!"

"It's a statue of King Louis the Thirteenth!" Shay called out to him, and he waved back in thanks. She reached out and put an arm around Kim's shoulders, shaking her head at their boyfriend's antics, "He's distracted by the _weirdest_ things..."

"Eh, admit it," Kim murmured, leaning her head against Shay's shoulder and reaching up to grasp her hands, "you love his childlike wonder."

"Childlike's about righ-..." Shay started, but a shocked, quiet voice behind them stopped her.

"Shego, es zat hyu?" Shay briefly wondered how Kim would react to the woman as they both turned, and then realized she had no idea how to react herself. Especially when the woman boldly stepped forward and placed her hands on the pale woman's shoulders and kissed her cheeks, "Oh, my God, it _es_, it's so good to zee hyu!"

"R-Rosamund?" The woman behind them was quite stunning; tall and statuesque in a lean, healthy looking fashion. She had a sculpturally beautiful face, piercing, glacial blue eyes and natural looking, platinum blonde hair. Her feminine curves were clearly defined despite the billowy blouse and loose, flowing skirt.

"How haff hyu _been_, my dear?" the woman asked, "Hyu look _incredibell_, an' not nearly as depressed as hyu looked when we went our separate ways..."

"I'm doin' a lot better since getting with Kimmie and Ronnie..." Shay said simply, the note of happiness in her tone almost drowning out the aura of smugness at the answer.

"Zso I gathered from your interview!" She giggled, then turned to Kim as a blush spread across her cheeks and nose, "And where are my mannars? I am Rosamund Favreau, and hyu are Kim Possibell, non?"

"_Oui, __c'est un plaisir!_" Kim said, taking her hand out of her artist's bag after turning down her music, before leaning in at the same time as Rosamund and exchanging cheek kisses with the older woman. The pulled back, tittering slightly as the red-head glanced at Shay. The pale beauty knew she saw the blush crawling up her neck, and shook her head stiflingly, "I'd continue in French, but I'm a bit rusty..."

"Well, hyur prunciation ez quite good!" the woman nodded pleasantly as if to affirm her own opinion.

"Well, the French language teacher at my high school was a native of Marseille..." Kim gave a shrug, earning a laugh from Rosamund and an indulgent chuckle from Shay.

"So," Shay prodded, her blush receding slightly, "Favreau? You landed ol' Skinny Jeans?"

"Oh, _oui_, but Reno, 'e ez not zo skinny, now..." she giggled, holding an arm up and flexing, before dropping her hand to show off a fancy but elegant wedding set, "'E gaff me 'is grandmother's engagement and wedding bands!"

"Wow," Shay blinked, then snickered, "I _told_ you he was good!"

"Oh, shush, hyu!" Rosamund laughed, rolling her eyes. When a young pair of voices called out to her, she turned with a huge grin, "Oh, Shego, zess ez my zson and my niece!"

"Hi there!" Shay and Kim called out at the same time, which made the young boy hide behind his mother's legs, peeking out at them shyly. He was incredibly cute, with big, blue eyes much like his mother's, a scruffy mop of brown hair and a skinny build. Kim leaned down, holding the left side of her headphones against her collarbone to silence it even more, while using her right braced against the artist's bag as an odd sort of support. Holding out a hand, she gave the boy her most winning smile and said, "I'm Kim Possible, who are you?"

"J-Jason..." he squeaked, blushing and hesitantly stepping from behind his mother to take her hand. After a moment, he asked, in English that was surprisingly less accented than his mother's, "A-are you the _real_ Kim Possible?"

"Yep!" Kim smiled as she let go of his hand, grabbing Shay's left and pulling her down with her, much to Rosamund's amusement, "And this is my girlfriend, Shay Gottlieb."

"H-Hello." he said again, holding his hand out.

"Hello, Jason." Shay smiled down at him, shaking his hand with appropriate seriousness for a moment before standing back and looking back at Rosamund, "He's cute, Rosie!"

"Yeah," Kim agreed, a twinkle in her eye that held a complex string of emotion that Shay couldn't quite follow, "he'll be a heartbreaker when he's older."

"That's for sure!" Shay agreed with feeling, "How old's the heartbreaker in the making?"

"'E whill be five in about two weeks." Rosamund agreed, "As for being a heartbreaker? He probably whill be, jus' like his fazher." Shay nodded, as if that didn't surprise her in the least. Then Shay looked over at the girl with an appraising gaze. To her eyes, and relative to Rosamund and Kim, the girl was almost plain looking. She was about fourteen, almost as tall as Shay despite her age, but build much like Kim, though less outwardly athletic. Despite that, she appeared to be quite healthy, and the excited expression on her face spoke volumes as she stepped forward, "This ez Nicole, and she ez quite a fan of dzhe botzh of hyu and your boyfriend..."

"My boyfriend whill not behlieve I met hyu!" the girl gushed, sharing cheek kisses with the older women.

"It's no big," Kim chuckled, "Would you like an autograph for proof?"

"Would you?" Nicole squealed in an oddly quiet manner, then blushed deeply as she began to dig through her small, if fashionable purse.

"Speaking of sweethearts," Rosamund prodded as she glanced about, "where ez Ronald Stoppabell?"

"Exuding childlike wonder at the statue..." Shay declared airily, pointing towards the center of the park.

"Shay!" Kim gasped in mock surprise, slapping her shoulder. Unfortunately, unable to hide her own mirth.

"Zso, 'e ez much like Frederick?" the blonde asked, waggling her eyebrows at the pale woman.

"Cuter and smarter than Frederick." Shay said with an impish grin, drawing a delighted chortle from Rosamund.

"Would you like an autograph, too, Jason?" The shy boy nodded, smiling brightly at the teen heroine. "Helen, would it be okay to take a page from your book for Jason's autographs?"

"Of course, of course!" she tittered, the delight at Shay signing her book clear as day.

Shay smiled at the scene, signing a new page for Jason when she felt a buzzing from her handbag. She pulled her phone out and, with an annoyed expression, unlocked the touch screen and let out a long suffering sigh, "Hello, Greg..."

Kim's attention snapped to her girlfriend at the name, then back to Jason, who was positively glowing with happiness to see two of his heroes names on the sheet of paper. "We'll get Ron and Rufus to sign it in a minute, too. Sound good?"

"Yes, ma'am!" he said excitedly, hopping from one foot to the next.

Kim turned to give Nicole a wink, but was surprised to see her and Rosamund's attention elsewhere. Then she heard a startled curse from Shay that made her even more confused, "Look, Greg, I'll call you back in an hour, something's come up... _Yes_, I promise! Bye!"

Kim turned to see Ron making his way over to them, an oddly shaped ball in his hands that Rufus seemed to be talking to. When he got a bit closer, they heard the plaintive meows of a cat, followed by a confused, worried Ron speaking in a stressed, sing-song voice, "KP? We have a problem!"

"What the hell?" Shay asked before thinking, before glancing at the young ones and Rosamund.

The older woman smiled and shook her head reassuringly, "They hear worse from Reno, Shego..."

"Isn't that..." Kim started, and both Rufus and Ron nodded in a worriedly excited manner.

"It's Debutante, Camille's cat..." Ron's simple declaration made Shay and Kim both bristle, then glance around the park as if searching for someone. "She was sitting in one of the trees and tried to get Rufus' attention, but the branch broke, and, well..." Ron shrugged helplessly, as if uncertain how to proceed. Shay turned to Rosamund and opened her mouth, but the older woman beat her to the punch.

"I take et dziss ez Team Possibell buzinez?" Rosamund asked in a slightly worried tone. Shay was about to tell her when Rufus piped up, waving his arms to get their attention. "We can always meet up later?"

"Sure, what's your number?" Shay asked, preparing to save it to her phone. The older woman gave her the number, but held up her hand, "This might not take too long, how long you gonna be in the park?"

"A little while?" Rosamund said uncertainly, glancing at Helen and Jason.

"Okay, I guess find a spot and we'll get back with ya!" Shay replied when both children nodded, then turned back to Rufus, "So, you can understand what she's saying, Bud?"

"No' worry!" When everyone's attention was on him, he began to sign in a very rapid fire fashion, "She was trying to get my attention when the branch she was on broke and she fell on Ron. She also said that Camille left her with her butler, Gerald, and that Gerald is missing. I think GJ may have taken him in, but I am not certain." Rufus glanced back as Debutante, annoyed at being ignored and being held in a gentle but restrictive hold, howled and hissed at him. Rufus blushed slightly and murmured, "She also said Camille looked different the last time she saw her, and sounded and smelled different. She said that a big fat man in blue and a man I think was Will Du came over, so maybe we can call him?"

"Not a bad idea..." Kim murmured, glancing down at her wrist Kimmunicator. Before she activated it, she glanced over at Rosamund,her son and niece, who were sitting a short distance away, then over at Ron, "Hey, Ron, Rufus, could you sign your autograph for the kids as part of Team Possible while I get ahold of A-... Er, Will?"

"Sure thing, KP!" Ron enthused, glancing down at Debutante, then at Shay, "Er, Shay, could you?"

"Give her here, Sport..." Shay chuckled, holding her hands out.

Rufus had dashed away at the first mention of autographs, but turned back to sign at them, "Let me finish and I will translate for Debutante."

Shay nodded as the blond had passed Debutante off, the cat grumbling in discontent. The pale woman glanced down at the fuming, hairless feline and muttered, "Don't glare at me, cat... Your momma was a royal bitch to me in lockup, but I don't have any issues with you... Yet."

Debutante glared up at her for a moment before snorting and turning her head away with a flick of her ears. Shay snorted in return as she felt Rufus climbing up towards her shoulder, before gazing at her younger lover, _What the hell have we gotten ourselves into?_

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

Kim sat down on a bench well away from anyone else and hit the main button on the wrist Kimmunicator. A few moments later, Wade's face popped up, and other than looking a bit singed he was fine. Before he could say a word, Kim's face crumpled in a mix of concern and amusement and she asked, "Wade, wha..."

"Small accident in the lab..." Wade answered as Kim stared at him, incredulity clear on her face. Then a series of pops interrupted him, and Drakken ran by in the background, huge rose petals around his neck. The former, and probably still mad - if working for the good guys - scientist was waving at what looked like large honeybees as he ran off trailing smoke behind him. Vivian Porter and Oliver were right behind him, the former carrying a fire extinguisher, the latter an odd electronic device. As she watched, one of the outsized bees exploded in an electronic burst, and Wade winced, "Well, a couple, really."

"Er, everyone okay?" Kim asked, then shook her head, "Y'know what? I'm not _even_ gonna ask..." Wade smiled and nodded in understanding, but raised a hand and gave her a fifty-fifty gesture. Shaking her head, the red-head sighed and plunged on, "Anyway, could you get me in touch with Will Du, please and thank you? It's about possible confirmation we have of his concerns discussed in Amsterdam..."

"No problem, Kim!" the genius chirped, and an instant later, the GJ splash screen replaced his visage as the call connected.

"Good afternoon, Kimberly." Will said, his accent the one she normally associated with him, "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

"Camille Leon's cat, Debutante." Kim answered, angling the camera to show the fuming cat held in Shay's arms, "According to Rufus' translation, she was trying to get his attention when she literally fell into Ron's arms." Rufus winced and hid in Shay's hair as Debutante hissed and yowled at the statement. She bucked as if ready to jump after Rufus, but with a half-glare from Shay she calmed down, pouting up towards the shoulder Rufus was hiding on. Kim rolled her eyes and continued, "Anyway, we were worried that Camille might be around, but she told Rufus that Cammille's been missing, as has her butler, Gerald."

Will nodded and pursed his lips, before signaling someone off screen. A moment later, Betty Director appeared, which drew an excited, purring mewl from the hairless cat. "So this is Ms. Leon's cat, Debutante, then?"

The comment stopped Debutante from speaking, and made the cat's face scrunch up for a moment, before she let out a confused, plaintive whine. Shay grimaced slightly, glancing between the cat and the screen, shrugging when Betty raised an eyebrow. "Odd..."

Kim was about to speak when Shay piped up, "Hold on, Rufus is translating..." She glanced at Betty and Will, "Do either of you know American Sign Language?" Both nodded, so she kept quiet as Rufus translated Debutante's latest string of seeming complaints.

"She says, 'That woman looks like Mistress did when I saw her last. I do not understand what is going on.'" Rufus paused, his face worried as he continued, "She is very distraught, worried about Camille and Gerald."

"Debutante seems more intelligent than most cats." Will observed, earning a series of grumbles, a growl or two, and many flicks of the ears and tail from Debutante.

Rufus giggled, translating for her, "She said you are smart for a male human. She also said, 'I was picked up from a place that bred many, many cats like me, but they did something to our minds. I've always been smarter than most cats, almost as smart as Rufus.'" Rufus blushed slightly, then added, "She is as unmotivated as Shay was as a villain."

"Hey, now..." the former thief grumbled, flushing slightly as both Will and Betty tried to hide their amusement, "Oh, come on, not you two as well?"

"If th' shoe fits, Nahghtlahght..." Will said, a touch of his accent showing through.

Betty, however, kept her humor mostly off of her face as she spoke, "Be that as it may... Debutante?" The cat turned to stare at her, distaste and annoyance clear in her bearing, possibly all directed at Betty, "I know I resemble your... Mistress, Camille Leon's last form, but I assure you that we have done nothing to harm Gerald. In fact, we believe he may be in danger from your mistress, merely by the fact that we... Approached him with questions."

Betty glanced about as if taking in the scenery near the four of them, then sighed softly, "Kimberly, Shay, would Team Possible be willing to bring Miss Debutante to a local GJ office for debriefing? I know you're still on vacation, but she has information which could prove valuable, and, frankly, we believe Camille has become unstable. She could even be a threat to Debutante, so we may have to house her until the level of threat is assessed."

"I'm fine with it." Shay shrugged at the agreeing look from Kim.

"Me too." Ron agreed, making Shay jump slightly and give him a rather dirty look. The blond blushed slightly and shrugged, before looking down at the screen, "When do you want us to bring her by?"

"We'll be there in about an hour and a half." Betty said as Will typed in an address, "We'll arrive by tube at, call it 3:35?"

"Sounds good." Kim said, glancing over at Debutante, who seemed bored with the whole situation. However, the twitch of her tail belied that appearance, drawing a smirk from the red-head, "I think we'd better take Debutante for some food, she seems hungry."

The cat's ears perked up at that, drawing chuckles from everyone, much to the cat's apparent chagrin. She hid her chagrin by turning to lick at her left upper-leg. Shay shook her head at the cat, then glanced at the screen, "Well, I guess that's settled, then! See you two in a bit." She glanced at her lover and their boyfriend as Kim hung up, shrugging slightly, "Well, I want to catch up with Rosie, you think one of you could get her some meat, cooked but with no spices?" She glanced at Debutante, "What kind of meat?"

Debutante made an odd sounding, grumbling meow, and Rufus translated, "Chicken. But she says she likes spices."

"Sorry, cat," Shay murmured with a slightly wider smirk, "we don't know what spices are safe for you, and don't want to make you sick, so you'll have your chicken plain." Shay pursed her lips, "And why no fish?"

Rufus translated an annoyed, purring meow and tail flick, "She dislikes fish."

"Um, okay?" Kim blinked, before shrugging and leaning up to give her lover a kiss, "Where should I go, and do you want me to tell Rosamund we're free for about forty-five minutes to an hour?"

"Sure," Shay nodded, then pointed over to a small bistro a bit down the street to the southeast, "Go there, show them this card, and tell them Ms. Gottlieb wants some take out. Get the four of us something, and include a plain, unspiced chicken breast in the order. Tell them it's for a cat, they'll understand."

"Something they're used to hearing from you?" Kim teased, tittering in delight when Shay blushed.

"One of the two girls that got to see my bedroom at the apartment had a cat that preferred chicken..." Shay informed her with as much dignity as she could muster. Kim nodded as Ron and Rufus chuckled, which made Shay blush even deeper. "Get goin', Princess!" she urged, balancing Debutante in one arm while reaching down and tickling Kim's midsection with the other.

Kim let out a put upon squeak before sticking her tongue out and trotting off. Shay glanced at Ron when he laughed, cocking her head at him when he turned back to her, "Seems she's forgotten all about her little arousal problem..."

"Oh, I'll make sure she remembers on the way to the GJ office..." Shay promised, a devilish smirk on her face as they made their way over to where Kim was speaking to Rosamund, her son and niece.

Debutante just looked back and forth between the humans, wondering why she smelled such oddness from them. She got the impression that they were Kim Possible's mates and, at the same time, that they were like hunters on the prowl for the same red-head. She glanced at Rufus and voiced her confusion, to which he answered, "Humans in love are hard to understand."

For some reason, the statement put her more at ease than she figured it should have...

**KP-RS-SG-KP-RS-SG**

"They are on the run!" Pipes of the Upperclassmen exclaimed happily as WWEE Zeta agents ran back towards their transports.

"Do we follow 'em?" Mechanic asked, her tone hyper.

"Let them go, we've done what we were asked to do." X declared, smiling at his son and daughter-in-law as they hovered near the entrances, several agents unconscious on the ground about them. They could follow, of course, but they had been asked by GJ to watch after the facility, not pursue the bad guys.

"That is what we were asked, correct?" Junior asked, earning a grumbling assent from his wife.

"Very good, Pipes!" Triple-S congratulated him, smirking at how far his son had come since meeting his wife.

"Okay, so, like, how long until the GJ troops get here?" Bonnie asked, huffing slightly at being denied the chance at more combat, something Triple-S had noticed was like a melding of Kim Possible and Shego's-... Rather, _Shay's_ attitudes.

"ETA is fifteen minutes." Triple-S declared easily, "So stay on guard. I suggest position three for you, my dear, and position seven for Pipes."

"Roger." Bonnie sighed, shaking her head in mild annoyance, "Pipes, baby, you're _so_ rubbing my legs tonight."

"Well of course, my darling wife!" Junior said easily, "So, my lessons from Mr. Midas are paying off then, yes?"

"Oh, in _spades_!" Bonnie sighed dreamily, then sobered slightly, "Are we still going to Paris day after tomorrow?"

"Yes, I have business, that will take a good portion of the morning," Triple-S sighed, sounding almost annoyed with the thought of what he was going to be doing, "But afterwards, I am sure we can spend a few days there, and on Thursday, I have set up an appointment for you and Junior with Françios. Afterwards, I am sure we can enjoy the _Champs-Élysées_... Among other places."

"Sweetness!" Bonnie crowed, giggling happily, "We'll have to call Kim and company and let them know we're coming!"

"That I am thinking is a very good idea, Love!" Junior enthused. By his tone, he sounded as if he were about to say more when he made an odd, cut off blubber of nonsense, before muttering, "That is very strange... X, can you get Wade Load on the communicators? I am picking up an encrypted signal that is coming from the direction of the villains' escape!"

"One moment." Triple-S said, calling up the young genius. While the call went through, a thought occurred to him, "Pipes, find a position that allows cover, but also allows you to keep tapped into their communications."

"I am already on my way, X." Junior replied, a smirk on his face in the small video link in the lower left hand section of Triple-S' screen. He smiled back, then his eyes widened in surprise as another transparent window opened, showing not Wade, but Drew answering the call.

Without preamble, the former mad scientist answered the unasked question, "Dr. Load is busy sleeping, how can I assist you, X?"

Triple-S smiled warmly, "We have picked up some encrypted villainous communications, Dr. Lipsky, and were hoping to decrypt them..."

"So I see," Drew drew out, having noticed the feed that Pipes was picking up, frowning slightly, "Oddly, this is quite similar to one I used about a year ago, and sold to the WWEE when I was short on cash and Shego was unwilling to float me a loan..."

He began to type, glancing up as Triple-S chuckled softly, "That makes sense, since it was Agent Alpha leading six or seven squads of Zeta agents." Triple-S supplied, earning a distracted nod from Drew.

"Here we go!" the blue man declared with a big, toothy grin, before sending the decryption algorithm to their suits. Triple-S waited and was rewarded with a very frustrated man with a barely noticeable Japanese accent yelling into his communications system.

"...-o know where in all of the Hells were you and your men, Tripe?" the agent demanded. Triple-S was surprised to see him identified as Agent Alpha on the communication signal, indicating that Gemini hadn't modified Drew's original encryption much at all.

"I _told_ you to give us six more hours, Alpha!" the sound of Agent Delta's exasperation was palpable as she answered, "We're halfway across the continental United States and the _entirety_ of the Atlantic! It would take us five hours to cross that distance in our transport, and we still have over a half hour of fitting and gear checks!"

"You said you could be here in short ord-..." Agent Alpha started, his tone dangerous, but was cut off by an outright frustrated Agent Delta.

"And I told your precious Alpha Three when he called that it would be a total of eight hours, and to tell us when you were planning to move!" Triple-S winced at the tone, familiar with it from his late wife; it was the sound of a woman preparing to verbally rip a man to shreds, "And you have the _gall_ to ask me where I was when you didn't even follow _standard procedure_?"

"Your _procedure_, you useless bitch, is to listen to _my_ orders and act accordingly and with alacrity! I ordered you to be here, or tell me that you would _not_ be here!" Alpha snapped, the rising aspect of his vocal pitch adding an unexpected viciousness to his voice, "Not to give me approximations that sound more like _excuses_! If you can't even follow a _simple_ order, why are you in the WWEE in the first place!"

"I wish they had video!" Bonnie growled, more to herself than anyone else. Triple-S had to agree as he settled into his new position. There was something off about the conversation, but he could only chalk it up to missing the opening.

"You tread dangerous ground, Alpha!" Delta snapped back, though there was a dark tone of amusement in her tone, "Gemini may have been killed, but his other half has managed to contact _me_! _She_ has ordered us to work together, under _her_ leadership, as the _rightful_ heir to Gemini's power base!"

"And she will be out of contact for a week or more as she recovers!" Alpha grumbled, "Leaving me the de facto leader!"

"Right..." Delta said in a drawn out fashion, before huffing indignantly, "Well, Alpha, the next time you _think_ you _might_ need backup, call me _well before_ doing the operation, or it'll end up _another_ cluster fuck, just like _this_ one! Agent Delta, out!"

"Don't you hang up on m-..." the loud hiss of someone intentionally squelching a radio transmission interrupted his impending diatribe. There was a moment of heavy breathing before Alpha began to curse and rant about the woman he considered an ineffectual American whore, so Triple-S closed down the feed. Glancing at Junior, then Drakken, he grated, "We should probably record the feed, but I'd rather not listen to any more of that."

"Yes, Papi" Junior muttered in a tone very similar to his father's.

"Indeed," Drew agreed at the same time, "even at my worst, I would _never_ sink so low as to call a woman names such as that... But you're right, Senior, his ranting might reveal something useful."

"Quite, Drew, quite." Triple-S agreed as the scientist cut the connection. Seeing that Junior was on the roof of the facility they'd been called to guard, he continued to the team, "And it seems GJ is on their final approach. Let us all form up on Junior." Triple-S grimaced as he caught the jerky nod from the small video link to Bonnie, even as she muttered what he guessed were rather obscene invectives, her voice inaudible with 'MUTED' in bold capital letters below her name. Seeing his attention on her, Bonnie flushed slightly and unmuted her line, smiling sheepishly as Triple-S asked, "Are you alright, my dear?"

"Yeah, Daddy," Bonnie sighed, frowning, "I just hate assholes like that." She paused for a moment, her livid features calming even as she glanced away from his steady, understanding gaze, "Not just because of how they treat women, but because, well... I used to say similar things about people."

"But you have much changed, my love!" Junior countered, "And that changing is bettering you, yes? You have mended broken bridges, and constructed new ones you have never expected, so it is, as you say, all good!"

"Well, yeah, bu-..." Bonnie started, but Triple-S cut her off with a gentle, yet firm tone.

"And always remember, that the way you _were_ is in the _past_, my dear," Triple-S paused to let that sink in, before concluding in a softer tone, "so while you should never forget where you where, you should move forward with your new-found outlook on life."

"Yeah, I know." Bonnie flushed at Junior's enthusiasm for her and Senior's stern but optimistic declaration, then glanced at her father-in-law. Triple-S gave her that loving smile he so favored, and she sighed happily, "Thanks, love you guys..."

"As I, you, my dear." Triple-S chuckled, coming in for an easy landing beside his son, "Never doubt that."

"I still wish I had the words to let you know how I feel for you, that they would come so easily to me as they always have to my father, my Beautiful Orchid..." Junior declared softly as Bonnie landed next to him, "But I have not the tongue nor the skill of wordplay in English to do so..."

"Um..." Bonnie blushed slightly, and Triple-S had to force himself not to laugh in the way only an indulgent father could at what he felt was coming. He sighed happily as Bonnie's next words proved him right, "I... I'm not the best at _speaking_ Spanish, Baby, but I _do_ understand it really well... Does that help?"

"It is a _very_ big help, Bon Bon!" Junior crowed, his face beaming in indescribable joy. Barely a second later, he began to hum, as if seeking out a specific tone, and began to sing. Triple-S, and from the look on her face, Bonnie, both prepared to lower the volume on their suit coms. Both nearly fell over, however, when Junior's voice came over the coms, but not from pain or fear as they had half expected.

The voice coming over their coms was nothing like what they had expected. Just a little above a whisper, the quiet voice of Señor Senior, Jr., scourge of GJ's supermax facility in southeastern Colorado, had taken on a beautiful, sweetly high-pitched tone that shocked them to their souls. His voice, and his words, were as loving, as _intimate_ and _romantic_ as any performer of love ballads could ever wish for, and he seemed to be completely oblivious to it. "Oh, my God..." Bonnie whispered softly as the words began to settle in, tears springing to her eyes as her husband poured his heart into the song, "Junior, that's _beautiful_..."

Triple-S had to agree. He'd heard his son singing in English, and as much as he loved him, he cringed at the mere _thought_ of his son's voice singing. However, in that moment, he had a small epiphany, one he had to, once again, thank his daughter-in-law for. His son, while he enjoyed being a hero, had bemoaned never truly having a singing career. Now that he knew his son could sing in so... So _breathtaking_ a manner, and on the fly like he was, he had _much_ to contemplate.

Foremost in his mind, however, was whether the three of them could pull off being both superheroes and family members to the next Spanish language singing sensation to hit the music world?

**Author's Notes**

And another chapter down. Again, fairly slow, but a few more points of import, and fun, for everyone. Starting with poor Kim, who found out you _always_ have to be careful when grabbing the tiger by the tail. Then there was Debutante, who seems a bit lost without her Mistress. But, after a brief interlude with a lovely woman from Shego's past, it seems she has a chance to at least find out what happened to her Mistress, non? And, of course, there's the Upperclassmen, classy and heroic as always.

As always, thanks to Neo the Saiyan Angel for her flow/feel beta work! And remember, everyone: there's lots of fics out there so keep up the reading, and if ya like a fic, give the author a review!


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